


Power and Honor

by ZeroTheLeech



Category: He-Man and the Masters of the Universe, She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)
Genre: Betrayal, Crossover, F/F, F/M, Found Family, M/M, Mentions of Dark! Glimmer, Mentions of Thundercats, Other, Past Abuse, Past Character Death, Past Torture, Post-Canon, Post-Catra (She-Ra) Redemption, Pregnancy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-09-24
Updated: 2020-08-15
Packaged: 2020-10-27 13:46:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 134,667
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20761331
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ZeroTheLeech/pseuds/ZeroTheLeech
Summary: By the Power of Greyskull, Adam wages an endless battle against the malevolent Skeletor for the fate of Eternia as He-Man, the Most Powerful Man in the Universe.For the Honor of Greyskull, Adora fought an uphill war against the forces of Horde Prime and the Evil Horde as She-Ra, the Princess of Power.Now, as both their worlds collide, they must stand together to face a united threat under the leadership of an evil as ancient as the universe itself. And along the way, discover something neither of them knew they lost.





	1. Prologue: Then and Now

Adora leaned over the railing of the second floor, overlooking the bustling crowd of people mingling below around the Bright Moon ballroom. The fact that Bright Moon even had a ballroom was still a surprise to Adora considering that she had lived in the castle for nearly two years. Though in her defense, Adora would argue, she never really went anywhere other than her room, Glimmer’s, and the war council chamber – dancing and social interaction had not been on the top of Adora’s list during the war, especially after the Princess Prom debacle. Although that day hadn’t been entirely unpleasant despite the outcome...and Catra had looked _really _great in that suit….

Adora quickly shook her head, trying her mightiest to fight off the heat from her face and went back to people watching.

Glimmer was the easiest to pick out of the crowd. Not only was she dressed in the most regal attire best suited for the ruling Queen of Bright Moon, but she was surrounded by a cluster of equally important-looking people, all of them chatting away quietly near the back of the ballroom. Suffice to say, Glimmer looked bored out of her mind and wanted nothing more than to “poof” away to freedom. The only reason she hadn’t already was because her mother/royal advisor, Angela, held a firm hand on Glimmer’s shoulders to keep her in place while they engaged in a long-winded discussion with the King and Queen of Halfmoon. Adora would have thought Frosta’s company would make things a little more bearable for the young queen, but the serious look on the ice princess’s expression could only mean that she was equally engaged in the diplomatic discussions and would be no help to Glimmer.

Chuckling at her best friend’s misfortune, Adora searched the rest of the ballroom for her other friends.

She spotted Princess Peekablue on the dance floor swaying gently to the music with her girlfriend, Sweet Bee, but the insect princess would occasionally sneak glances over Peekablue’s shoulder to glare at the Star Sisters, who returned the heated stare from their table. Peekablue had no idea of the dangerous game she was in the middle of with four princesses all waging a silent war for her affection. And not too far away from them, Netossa shared chocolate covered strawberries with her wife, Spinnerella, taking turns to feeding each other. Adora didn’t understand the point of it all when they were perfectly capable of feeding themselves, but Bow said it was something that loving couples did…and Adora felt somewhat jealous….

Just below her perch, Adora found King Micah and Castaspella standing near one of the pillars, whispering between one another and giggling like a couple of mischievous children. Knowing what was coming next, Adora fought back the urge to giggle herself when she watched Micah twirled his fingers and created a magic circle that released a quick burst of air at one of the sorcerers from Mysticor. The gust blew against the sorcerer’s head and the old sorcerer’s hair flew off completely, revealing that he had been wearing a wig the entire time. The stuffy sorcerer cried out and started chasing his hairpiece around the ballroom, but Castaspella conjured her own spell that kept the toupee just barely out of his reach. They both had to clap their hands over their mouths before the laughed too hard and got caught.

Unsurprisingly, Mermista looked bored and uninterested, almost like she wished she could be anywhere other a lively party filled with good food and tasteful music. And of course, Sea Hawk tried to brighten her mood by jumping on the buffet table and singing one of his shanties, only to end up kicking a burner and lighting the entire table on fire. Fortunately, the guards were too accustomed to Sea Hawk’s antics and had fire extinguishers prepared while Mermista groaned with her face in her hands. Though Adora couldn’t help smirking when she caught the glint of the golden wedding band on her ring finger; one that matched the ring on Sea Hawk’s finger. Those two, she thought exasperatedly….

Adora’s old squad mates – Lonnie, Kyle, and Rogelio – quickly flocked around the buffet table when the fire had been put out, trying to pile as much food as they could on their plates in fear that Sea Hawk would set it ablaze again. Since leaving the Horde, Adora had taken to introducing them to all kinds of food. From candy and cake to steak dinners and fried chicken; the way their eyes lit up after their first bite of food with actual taste made Adora wonder if she looked like that back in Thaymor. Needless to say, they were never going back to ration bars. Adora wondered if Bow’s idea of offering the Horde real food to make them switch sides had any real merit back then.

But mixed in with all the high-profile attendees and their clean and fancy clothes, there were at least a dozen or more of the most grimy, dirt-cover, ragged clothed people Adora had ever met. It was definitely a sight to behold when a bunch of bandits from the Crimson Waste suddenly showed up at the palace gates, but they were warmly invited the same as anyone else. After all, they were honored guests of Princess Scorpia and the Princess of Halfmoon, plus they fought alongside the Rebellion in the war.

Too bad Huntara wasn’t among them, Adora thought disappointedly. If anyone deserved to be at this party, it was her after all the help she had been to Adora since they first met at that dingy tavern in the Crimson Wastes. But she supposed that the brawny woman preferred the solitary life after all the years she served in the Horde. Adora only hoped that she would one day decide to join them again when they didn’t need to fight.

And speaking of Princess Scorpia, Adora spotted the large woman awkwardly stumbling across the dance floor, looking down at her feet regularly to check that she wasn't stepping on Perfuma's. The flower princess smiled understanding and was patient with the scorpion woman, giving her all the time she needed to get into the rhythm.

Adora sighed wistfully as the two of them danced across the floor, giggling like giddy children. She was honestly happy for Scorpia. She had come a long way from being just being Catra's sidekick and grew into her own person, able to find her own happiness. Adora also knew that, despite everything that happened between them, Scorpia still had feelings for Catra, even though the Magicat made it clear that those feelings could never be returned. It was heartbreaking, but it seemed that - slowly but surely - she was starting to realize that there was someone capable of returning those feelings right in front of her.

And finally, there was Entrapta. It came as a surprise to no one that the "geek princess" as Mermista affectionately dubbed her, was choosing to keep her distance from the party, prefering to observe social interaction from the edge of the ballroom than participate in one herself. Entrapta sat back on her wild length of purple hair like a chair with one hand holding a tape recorder practically glued to her lips and the other rubbing soothing circles around her impressive baby bump.

Adora’s smile somewhat faltered after that. Everyone knew who the father was without having to ask. Adora felt a strange mixture of betrayal and sadness when Entrapta found out she was pregnant (even more so when the hair princess treated the whole thing like it wasn’t a big deal). Betrayal that Entrapta, one of her closest friends and most innocent people she knew, had even considered having relations with a man who had brought war to Etheria. And sadness that the same man had found enough love to create life and knowing that the child would grow up never knowing its parent. It was a feeling Adora knew well growing up in the Fright Zone….

“There you are!”

Adora nearly jumped out of her skin, her base instincts commanding her to spin around and punch anyone who tried to sneak up on her. Luckily, she managed to fight off the urge before she could give Bow a black eye; the poor boy had thrown his hand up protectively to guard his face.

“Whoa, whoa, easy, I’m a delicate flower!” Bow cried theatrically. Adora lowered her fist and the both of them laughed. He threw his arm around Adora’s shoulder playfully, which was a little difficult now that Adora was several inches taller than him. “What’re you doing up here? Glimmer’s been looking all over for you. She said she’s dying _painfully and agonizingly slow _out of boredom. Not that I blame her – I’d sure hate to throw a party and not have any fun because I’m stuck talking with all those advisors and diplomats.”

“Oh, the terrible woes of being queen,” Adora said teasingly. “Unfortunately, this knight in shining armor has the night off. She’ll have to find someone else to rescue her.” The two of them shared a laugh at their unfortunate friend’s expense, then went back to observing the party below. “But it’s nice that we finally have a reason to party. And this time we don’t have to worry about anything blowing up.”

“Unless Entrapta brought another one of her inventions,” Bow piped in.

“Nah, the guards confiscated everything she had before she entered the castle, including Emily the Second,” said Adora. She sighed contently, crossing her arms on the railing and resting her chin on her forearms. “Is it possible for robots to be sad. Emily looked like a lost puppy when she got taken away.”

“I wouldn’t be surprised,” said Bow, leaning against the railing with Adora. “Man, can you believe it’s already been six months since the war ended. It almost doesn’t feel real.”

Adora knew the feeling. Six months…. It had been sixth months since the Rebellion had won the final battle, six months since Adora had called upon the power of She-Ra, six months since Adora realized she could finally be happy…. She wouldn’t admit it to Bow, but sometimes Adora worries that she will wake up and find out that the war was still going on. She could hardly blame herself, having spent her entire life being trained to fight for the Horde, and then spent the last three years fighting for the Rebellion.

Those three years had changed her a lot, Adora thought, both mentally and physically.

Adora grown taller since she first found the Sword of Protection, standing several inches above most of her friends and her muscle tone had noticeably increased, but without making her look awkward like she feared. She didn’t know if it was because of her own biology or if She-Ra had some influence over her growth. Her favorite jackets had been destroyed during a raid on the Fright Zone, but had been thankfully replaced with one similar, this time branded with the mark of the Horde on her back, no longer ashamed of the symbol of her old home once the Rebellion and the Horde joined forces. Her body had its fair share of scars, most prominently the slash marks that ran down her back and the three that cut across her cheek, both “gifts” from Catra’s anger. But her most grievous wound the war had graced her with was her entire left arm, when Horde Prime had burned away the skin completely after besting She-Ra in a demonstration of power. The skin had never healed, but Bow, being the sweet boy that he is, gifted her with a special white glove he made himself to cover it up, even stitching She-Ra’s golden emblem on the back of the hand.

“Yeah, I get what you mean,” said Adora admitted. “We’ve been through a lot, haven’t we?”

“That’s putting it mildly,” said Bow. “There were so many times I was scared that we were in way over our heads and gonna die…especially with everything that happened after the portal.”

Bow didn’t go into any greater discussion after that, for which Adora was truly grateful for. The last thing she wanted was to be reminded of the worst days of her life after Angela sacrificed herself to save reality…when she finally decided to cut Catra out of her life….

Adora and Catra had never truly tried to kill each other (or at least Adora didn’t), but something had changed after the reality destroying portal and the loss of Queen Angela. Now it was no longer about the Horde and the Rebellion, but a personal vendetta between former friends turned hated enemies. Neither one of them cared about the outcome of the war anymore – they were just going out of their way to personally hurt each other. Looking back, Adora was horrified at the person she had been during those days. She hadn’t realized how far she had truly gone until she drove her sword straight through Catra’s gut, dangling her a foot off the ground, choking on her own blood. In that moment, Adora froze, the reality of what she had done washing over her like a cold shower. She was grateful to Scorpia for tackling her to the ground, ripping the sword out of Catra, and carrying the Magicat away for medical attention. Adora had felt numb days after that, too afraid to pick up the sword again. She had never killed anyone despite being the leader of a war, and she was scared about how easy it had been. Adora realized that she could have slaughtered Catra and the Horde any time she wanted…and that thought haunted her nightmares for weeks.

Light Hope, however, praised Adora for her willingness to kill her enemy.

Light Hope, Adora thought venomously. After escaping the Horde and desiring to learn more about herself, Adora had clung to Light Hope out of desperation for answers, a fact that the program held over her head for the longest time. Now, however, Adora wished she had never met the AI. She put her trust in Light Hope and the program had returned it with lies and secrets, trying to keep Adora under her thumb and making her more susceptible to control. Hatred rumbled deep in Adora’s chest when she remembered how Light Hope manipulated Catra’s memories to sever their bond, how she had tried to cut off all of Adora’s attachments to make her the “Perfect She-Ra”, all in the pursuit of her own goals. Adora doesn’t regret destroying the program – she was more like Shadow Weaver than Adora was comfortable with.

Shadow Weaver was another can of worms (“Why would you put worms in a can?” asked Adora when she first heard the expression). Adora knew she couldn’t be trusted. After all the years that she physically, mentally, and emotionally destroyed Catra, twisting her into the vengeful monster she had become, Adora _knew _that Shadow Weaver could not be trusted in the Rebellion despite her supposed “change of heart”.

Unfortunately, Glimmer felt differently. The grief of losing her mother combined with her desire for revenge caused the newly crowned Queen of Bright Moon to turn to Shadow Weaver despite Adora and Bow’s protests. Shadow Weaver used her connection to Glimmers father, her knowledge of the Horde, and their mutual hatred of Catra to worm her way into Glimmer’s graces and became her advisor. She started teaching Glimmer magic, all of which were uncomfortably darker compared to the spells used by other Sorcerers.

After that, Glimmer changed for the worst. She began to take an “Ends justify the means” approach to the war and made decisions that left the Rebellion questioning her leadership. She started taking unnecessary risks that cost soldier’s lives – many of which could have been avoided – she started taking prisoners, torturing them for information, commanding the arrests of anyone remotely related to the Horde regardless of their innocence, and she even began sacrificing entire villages just to get a win. Even when Adora and Bow tried to talk her down, Shadow Weaver proved to be more cunning than Adora remembered, using soft words and subtle manipulation to make Glimmer see her side of things.

It all came to a head when the Rebellion led an attack on Colonia where the Horde received its food supplies from. Unfortunately, Catra had also been in the village at the time, overseeing the collection and transport of the food confiscated from the villagers. Glimmer snapped the moment she saw Catra and any plan they once had fell apart immediately. With the Princess’s combined powers, they were able to drive out the Horde, but Glimmer wasn’t about to let Catra go. Using the dark magic she learned from Shadow Weaver, Glimmer paralyzed the Magicat and blasted her repeated bursts of dark energy, declaring that she wanted Catra to suffer before she died. That’s when Adora decided she could no longer stand by and let it happen. So she did the one thing she could think of at the time: she punched Glimmer in the face.

Once freed from the spell, Catra immediately fled from the village, but not before Adora noticed the confused and almost remorseful look in her eyes. Glimmer was _not _pleased with letting her mother’s killer leave. She blamed Adora for letting Catra get away – and rightfully so – but Adora argued that she couldn’t go around killing people because they are angry. They were supposed to be better than that.

That, however, turned out to be the wrong thing to say.

Adora had not expected Glimmer to use the paralysis magic on _her_, forcing the mighty She-Ra to her knees as every cell in her body felt like it was on fire. Glimmer was beyond furious. She told Adora outright that she was tired of “playing by the rules” and the Rebellion needed to stop holding itself back if they were planning on winning. If the Horde wasn’t going to fight fair, then neither were they, Glimmer spat in her face. And if Adora was intent on getting in her way…then they wouldn’t need her any more. Adora was genuinely terrified of the implications. Was Glimmer really going to kill her because they didn’t agree? Thankfully, she never found out because Bow had chosen that moment to shoot an arrow through Glimmer’s hand, cancelling out the paralysis spell while Glimmer cried out in pain, giving Adora enough time to escape.

After that, Bow was imprisoned for treason and She-Ra was declared a traitor to the Rebellion, complete with a sizable bounty to whoever brought her back alive. Adora had continued to fight against the forces of the Horde, but now had the added pressure of the Rebellion hunting her down. As She-Ra, the Whispering Woods had naturally protected her, even from the other princesses, providing her with a much-needed reprieve between battles. But stress of being on the outs with both sides of the war tore her up for the longest time and Adora had never felt so lost and alone.

Until one day she found herself wandering near the Talon Mountains south of Thaymor, where she found –

Adora was broken from her daydreams as a sound growl touched her ears.

She and Bow backed away from the railing and turned to their left just before a blur of gray and blue tackled Bow to the floor. Adora blinked for a moment and stared at the odd sight of the magical gray cat creature, its mane and tail a wave of blue light, licking the archer’s face relentlessly like an overexcited puppy.

“No – bwa – dow – I – no, no – ugh – stop, Melog!” Bow sputtered, practically drowning in lion slobber. “Please, stop – this is my best suit – no, come on – Adora, help!”

She really didn’t mean to laugh, but Adora couldn’t help it. The sad, pleading look in Bow’s eyes only seemed to enhance to comical nature of Melog drenching the poor archer. Adora also knew that if Melog was around, then that meant –

“Hey, Adora…”

The soft teasing voice in her ear brought a smile on Adora’s lips as she felt a clawed hand on her hip, gently pulling her around so that her greyish-blue eyes met with gold and blue. Catra smirked in her usual Catra-like way when she shot a sideways glance as Melog practically suffocating Bow, but made no sign of stopping it, and intertwined her hand with the Adora’s.

Adora had never thought that they would be here after the portal incident. She had feared that the final straw had been broken and they would hate each other for the rest of their lives. But here they are, in the middle of Bright Moon, hand-in-hand, sharing affectionate gazes without feeling the urge to kill one another.

If Adora thought she had changed in the last three years, it was nothing compared to the significant changes that Catra went through. No long was she that skinny kitten that Adora knew growing up, but a lean and healthy-looking Magicat once she had been introduced to proper meals and medicine. Gone was the uncomfortably tight and chaffing Horde uniform and replaced by loose, yet form fitting clothing that allowed for easier movements around her joints – red and black, of course. The old helm she had worn since as far back as either of them could remember was gone, destroyed as a symbol of her defection from the horde and to putting her past behind her. And finally – **_finally _**– she had cut that rat’s nest she had called hair, short enough that it barely reached past her ears, another symbolic gesture of her new lease on life. Adora loved Catra since they were children, but her hair always had a habit of poking Adora in uncomfortable places, especially when Catra would spend nights in _her _bunk.

“Uh…excuse me,” Both girls snapped out of their private moment to look at Bow, who was giving them an accusing stare. “Not that this isn’t a cute moment for you guys, but Catra, could you, perhaps, maybe…_get your pet monster off of me?!_”

“Whiner,” Catra commented good naturally. But the Magicat gave a sharp whistle and Melog immediately jumped off Bow, padding over to Catra’s side, who immediately gave her many affectionate pets. “Aw, who’s a good shapeshifting cat? You are! Yes, you are, Melog!”

It was strange at first to see Catra act so affectionate to anyone, especially a magical animal that could freely change shape, but now all she could think was that it was sweet. Bow, however, didn’t seem to share the same sentiment as he stood up, completely soaked in magical lion slobber, futilely trying to wipe the dribble out of his hair.

“Ugh, why does she always jump me,” Bow complained. “Why can’t she ever jump on Adora or Glimmer?”

“Because I can turn into an eight-foot buff goddess and Glimmer can poof away,” Adora answered teasingly.

“Why couldn’t I have been born a princess,” Bow groaned.

“Because you love flashing your bellybutton to the world,” said Catra mockingly.

“Hey, it’s a fashion statement!” Bow defended.

“Yeah, a statement that says you have no fashion,” said Catra, grinning.

Bow let out an exasperated groan and walked away, muttering to himself about needing a shower. That left Adora alone with Catra and Melog; the shapeshifting lion had turned over on her back and was receiving plenty of belly rubs from his owner. Adora smiled at the sight, not believing her luck that they had managed to reach this point.

Back when Adora was still on the run from the Rebellion and the Horde, she learned from Catra that the Magicat had been on her own journey of self-discovery since their last meeting in Colonia.

Adora only knew about the events that followed from second-hand accounts, but from what she had heard, Scorpia had become terrified of Catra’s latest spiral that she confessed to Hordak the real reason why Entrapta had been sent to Beast Island. Hordak – was – _livid_. He had wasted no time punishing Catra, not even bothering with the usual theatrics, but he did not kill her right away like they all thought he would. Instead, he had his second-in-command shipped off to Beast Island herself and promised that she would only be welcomed back to the Fright Zone if she returned with Entrapta in tow, healthy and alive. Catra had asked why Hordak didn’t just command his people on the island to bring Entrapta back themselves, and Hordak said that he wanted to prolong Catra’s punishment. If she succeeded, she would be reinstated as his second-in-command for her troubles, but should she fail, she would be forgotten and Entrapta would be returned safely to his side. Adora didn’t need to be there to understand what Hordak wanted: he was hoping Catra would die on Beast Island.

So Catra had been sent to Beast Island in chains and disgrace in front of the entire Fright Zone and was greeted with a savage beast-man named Grizzlor (whom she said looked more like a giant hairball and smelled like moldy cheese). Catra had been vague about the events that transpired on Beast Island – the Magicat said it’s because she didn’t want to give Adora nightmares, which only made Adora roll her eyes – but not only did Catra find Entrapta alive and thriving (“She built her own secret lab underneath the prison!” Catra exclaimed wildly in amusement), but she had accidentally stumbled across someone whom the Rebellion had long thought was dead: Glimmer’s father, King Micah!

Catra once again skimped on the details of what happened (“You are the worst storyteller ever!” Adora complained once, and Catra just stuck her tongue out in reply), but the three of them had conspired together and became the first people in history to ever escape Beast Island, and Catra even left a permanent reminder on Grizzlor’s face.

After that, Catra had planned to drag Entrapta back to Hordak and beg for forgiveness, and even brought Micah along as a bargaining chip to use against the Rebellion. But Micah had proven to be even more uncooperative than Catra the time she had been caught by Glimmer and Bow. He didn’t intentionally make things difficult, but he constantly drove them off course, wandering away absentminded whenever they passed villages and would get into all sorts of trouble that Catra had to bail them out of. Catra once told her that Micah had tried to make tea from leaves he couldn’t identify, only to find out too late that it was poison ivy. Adora wouldn’t have believed it if Entrapta hadn’t recorded the event in her log.

But somewhere along their travels, Micah and Catra had started to bond, though the Magicat had refused to accept it at first. When Entrapta mentioned Catra’s victory over Shadow Weave long ago, Micah told them that it had been Shadow Weave who had sent Micah to Beast Island and that she had once been Micah’s old teacher, Light Spinner. Micah voiced his regret at not seeing Shadow Weaver for the monster she was when he was younger, ignoring the signs of her growing thirst for power in a desperate bid for her approval and affection. A feeling that Catra knew quite well. Perhaps it was because he felt guilty for Catra being a victim of his mistake, but the old king had taken to acting as a paternal figure to Catra, praising and supporting her in a way that she wished Shadow Weaver had done, but never did.

But it was too much for Catra: the kindness, the warmth, the love she received from Micah when she did little to earn it. Catra’s fractured mind had come to associate compassion with pain. Anyone that had shown her even the slightest affection always turned on her. Adora, Shadow Weaver, Scorpia – they had all betrayed her one after the other when she had allowed herself to be vulnerable to them.

Catra finally blew up one day when Micah “made a physical gesture of parental-like affection” in Entrapta’s words (I.E. a hug). She had all but shoved Micah away and screamed all her heinous crimes right in his face. How she had kidnapped his daughter, destroyed the Whispering Woods, lead the assault against Bright Moon, tried to kill his family on countless occasions, and how his wife was gone forever because she was desperate for a win. Catra had waited for the punishment to come, fully expecting Micah to beat her in righteous anger. But what Micah did instead was something that Catra had thought would be the last thing anyone in his position would do: he pulled Catra against him, wrapped his arms around her like a security blanket, and rubbed her back softly while whispering soothing words into her ears.

Catra had been stunned; she couldn’t wrap her mind around why Micah was still being so nice to her after everything she had done.

Micah admitted that he wasn’t sure if he could forgive the things that Catra had done, but he understood why she did it in a way that Adora never could. Rather than a monster like the way the Rebellion saw her, Micah saw a victim to a lifetime of abuse and heartbreak. He saw someone who had to endure incredible hardships all alone until she was broken inside and wanted the pain to end, regardless of how it happened. Catra couldn’t argue against the claims because that’s _exactly _how she felt, as she confessed to Adora one day after their reunion. The Magicat had just wanted all the suffering to end, which was why she pulled the lever, knowing it would destroy the world and her along with it. But the thing that really hit Catra hard was Micah promising to stay by her side as long as she needed, if she would allow him to.

Something in Catra broke that day. According to Entrapta, it had been the first time she had seen Catra openly weep and hug someone willingly.

After that, Catra no longer had a desire to return to the Fright Zone or to get back into Hordak’s good graces. But then came the question of where they were supposed to go. Micah was the one who brought the answer to them.

As it turned out, Micah had known from the start that Catra was a Magicat, a fact Catra herself never knew because Shadow Weaver deemed it unnecessary to share this information. The old king not only knew where the hidden kingdom of the Magicats was, but was old friends with its queen, something about being old rivals in their childhood. Catra, both curious and with nowhere else to go, and Entrapta, driven by scientific inquiry, followed Micah to the Talon Mountains days before Adora showed up. Amid the ruins nestled in the base of the mountain – the original city of the Magicats, Micah told them, before they had built a second underground kingdom for emergencies – they found a maze of tunnels that lead miles beneath the mountain. Micah confessed that he didn’t know the true path to Halfmoon, but he knew Catra’s Magicat eyes would see the hidden signs that lined the walls of the tunnels.

The Kingdom of Halfmoon was truly a sight to behold as Adora had seen herself. The entire city was made from the same stone as the caverns like they had carved the entire mountain just for a place to settle. Halfmoon had several mines for which they excavated Magicite, magic gemstones with elemental properties like fire, water, and electricity, that allowed the Magicats to sustain themselves. In the center of the cavern was a massive castle that had been made to look like a lion, compete with a snarling maw and red-tinted windows for eyes*. And in the lion’s chest was Halfmoon’s Runestone – The Eye of the Sun – which radiated with sunlight that provided for the crops and gardens. But the most surprising sight had been the Magicats themselves. Adora had never known any cat-like humans other than Catra and the city was littered with hundreds of them, all of in various shapes, sizes, fur colors, and even different cat species. If Adora had been awestruck when she first saw them, she could only imagine how Catra must have felt, especially when she met –

Adora was pulled from her thoughts when Catra snapped her fingers in Adora’s face, making the blonde yelp and nearly fly over the railing. Adora didn’t know if she could live with the embarrassment of everyone witnessing the mighty She-Ra faceplanting in the middle of the ballroom.

“Hey, loser, you brain damaged?” Catra said unnecessarily loud. “You’ve been staring off into space with that glazed look in your eye.”

“Oh, sorry, I was – you know, just thinking,” Adora apologized embarrassingly.

“Wow, did you hurt yourself?” Catra asked tauntingly.

“Har, har, you are _sooo_ funny,” Adora groaned, rolling her eyes at the Magicat.

“Glad you think so,” said Catra, smirking. “But for real, though, what’s on your mind?”

“I was just thinking about when we met in Halfmoon,” Adora answered. “I had never seen so many people that looked like you. It was kinda overwhelming.”

“Take it from the girl who didn’t even know there were other people like her,” said Catra, leaning forward on the railing and gazing over the ballroom. A wicked smile crossed her lips when she saw Glimmer still speaking to the royal family of Halfmoon, looking ready to poof away at any moment. “Heh, sparkles looks totally miserable over there.”

“She’s been talking to your mom and dad since the party started,” said Adora, also leaning on the railing next to Catra. “What’re they talking about, anyway.”

“I _may _have told them that Queen Glitter wanted to talk about trade during the party,” Catra answered with a wicked grin.

“…If only you could use your powers for good instead of evil,” Adora shook her head, but was smiling nonetheless.

“Aw, where’s the fun in that, princess?” Catra said teasingly.

“I don’t think you have the right to call me that anymore, _princess_,” Adora retorted.

“Touché,” Catra acknowledged.

That was another thing that had completely _floored _them when they arrived in Halfmoon. Not only did Catra (Or C'yra of D'riluth III, as she was known by her birth name) have living family, but they were the _royal family_ no less, which made Catra the _Princess of Halfmoon_ (the irony was not lost on either of them).

Catra clearly got her looks from her mother, Queen C'yra of D'riluth II, who looked like a taller and more savage version of Catra who had accumulated more scars than they had ever seen on one person and wore them with pride. The Queen’s favorite was the deep, jagged mark that cut across her right eye, permanently blinding it, that she had apparently got when she hunted and slayed a Devil Beast that had been attacking the kingdom for weeks. Catra’s father, King Se’vage, was fierce-looking lion-man who was intimidatingly tall and looked strong enough to take She-ra in an arm-wrestling contest, but he was surprisingly kind and more scholarly than he looked. Certainly, he could throw a man across the room with ease, but he preferred books over combat. And then there was Catra’s little sister, M’ythra**, a tiny, ten-year-old Magicat that reminded Adora of what Catra looked like when they were that age, though M’ythra had inherited their father’s deep-red hair instead of Catra’s dark mane. The little Magicat didn’t appear to be in the ballroom, Adora noticed – she was probably put to bed when the party rolled into the night.

The biggest shocker had been when Melog had barreled through the throne room when Micah, Catra, and Entrapta arrived in the palace and immediately tackled Catra to the floor. Catra thought Melog was going to eat her, but instead found herself being licked to death.

According to the Queen C'yra,Melog had been the guardian of the Magicat royal family since the time of the First Ones, when Halfmoon's Runestone was first made. It had become a tradition that Melog would become a companion for each ruler of Halfmoon until the next generation was born. So when Catra had been birthed, Queen C'yra's bond with Melog had been broken and replaced by the newborn princess. That was how Catra could understand Melog even when the queen herself couldn't, even though they had not seen each other for decades years. That was how Queen C’yra realized that her baby that she had thought lost when the Horde raided their kingdom had finally returned.

Catra had seemed genuinely happy when Adora accidentally stumbled her way into Halfmoon. When word had spread that the mighty She-Ra had arrived in Halfmoon, they had celebrated her almost as much as they did for their princess’s return. Only Catra was not pleased when they did.

Somehow, Catra came to the conclusion that Adora was trying to steal away her happiness, just like she accused Adora of doing their entire lives. And when Adora refused to leave on Catra’s command, the Magicat had once again sabotaged her own happiness by transmitting the location of Halfmoon to the Horde in a desperate bid to one-up Adora. Adora, unfortunately, only managed to catch Catra at the end of her transmission and literally dragged Catra to Queen C’yra and explained what she had done. Catra didn’t deny any of it, but she refused to look at her mother. The Magicat queen didn’t say anything at first – Adora thought she was contemplating on how to punish Catra for her crimes. But instead of passing sentence, Queen C’yra did something that had left Adora and Catra speechless: she forgave Catra.

The queen should have been angry, Adora thought, she should have punished Catra for selling out her own people for her own selfishness. But Queen C’yra was not. She was unreasonably understanding as to why Catra did what she did and only blamed herself for not protecting Catra like she should have when Catra was first taken. The Queen allowed Catra to go unpunished and told her that she didn’t have to stay if she didn’t want to – that she was free to return to the Horde if she wished. Catra just remained kneeling on the floor, staring at the ground in bewilderment, while Queen C’yra ordered her guards to prepare for the invasion. Adora didn’t say anything to her former friend and just left her there on the floor to help the Magicats prepare.

The Horde invaders came the next day and it had been a long hard struggle with She-ra leading the charge alongside Queen C’yra and Micah. Halfway through the battle, Catra appeared on the leading tank, quite dramatically Adora might add, ripped her old helm off her head and smashed it on the tank, declaring herself Princess C'yra of D'riluth III, protector of the Kingdom of Halfmoon.

The tide of the battle immediately shifted in their favor. The Magicat, invigorated by their princess’s declaration, seemed to have double in strength and successfully repelled the Horde invaders. The celebration that followed was even bigger than the parties in Bright Moon with almost every Magicat drinking themselves to a stupor. It was during then that Queen C’yra stood in front of her people and declared Catra the rightful heir to the throne of Halfmoon. Adora, who had been careful with her drinking so as not to dull her senses, had still not forgiven Catra for everything she had done, but she was happy to know that they were on the same side again –

A shimmering cloud of sparkles exploded on Adora and Catra’s left side and both of them craned their heads toward a deeply frowning Queen of Bright Moon. Adora looked back down at the ground level. Their talks must have ended because Queen C’yra and King Se’vage were walking away from Angela, who shook her head exasperatedly and leered at the three of them from a distance.

“I hate you so much,” Glimmer hissed venomously at Catra.

“Wow, you really need to work on your people skills, _your majesty_,” Catra said smugly.

“You told your parents I wanted to talk about trade when all I wanted to do tonight was dance and stuff my face in chocolate!” Glimmer whined childishly. “You’re intentionally trying to ruin my night!”

“I will not stand here and have you accuse me of things I clearly did,” Catra gasped dramatically, unable to hold back her laughter.

“Why you…,” Glimmer grumbled.

The should-be regal and ever composed Queen of Bright Moon jumped on Catra’s back and started pulling the Magicat’s hair like a howler monkey. Catra hissed and tried throwing her off, but Glimmer had a strong grip. The entire time, Adora just leaned back against the railing and watched the scene play out while Melog settled herself on a patch of floor, yawning sleepily as she pointedly ignored her master’s pleas for help. Adora wasn’t afraid of them doing any lasting damage to each other; their fights these days were more playful than compared to how they were during the war.

After the Battle of Halfmoon, Adora knew what their next step had to be: Return to Bright Moon. Catra was understandably against it, considering that Glimmer tried to murder her last time they met, but Adora argued now that they knew Micah was alive, the old king might be able to reason with her. There was a lot of back and forth between them, but Catra ultimately agreed to join along with Entrapta and Melog. However, Shadow Weaver somehow caught wind of their plan; Adora wagered that the dark sorceress had never truly let Adora go and had been following her in secret for months. When Shadow Weaver told Glimmer that Adora and Catra had allied during the Battle of Halfmoon, she “conveniently” neglected to mention that Micah was with them, and that stirred up feelings of betrayal and resentment in the small queen.

As they had made their approach to Bright Moon through the Whispering Woods, Shadow Weave had apparently laid a trap that separated Adora and Catra away from the rest of their party and forced the both of them to run directly into kingdom alone. This did not leave a good impression on Glimmer, who had the entire Bright Moon army waiting for them. Though Adora didn’t want to fight them, Glimmer was beyond reasoning without Micah around and had no choice but to She-Ra up and fight their way to the castle alongside Catra.

Unfortunately, Glimmer knew Adora better than she thought as she stole the Sword of Protection straight out of Adora’s hand and "poofed" away to safety, leaving her powerless and standing back-to-back with Catra, surrounded by guards from all sides. It had almost seemed like they were finished as most situations Adora was in usually were, but she and Catra were saved when a combination of vines, water currents, icicles, whirlwinds, magic nets, and trick arrows incapacitated the soldiers.

Bow and the other princesses had come to their aid – more Adora’s than Catra’s. As it turned out, they never believed that Adora had betrayed the alliance; a fact they all keened into as they watched Glimmer spiral into a tyrant matching Hordak. Incensed, Glimmer revealed the full extent of her teachings and crippled most of princesses when she combined the full power of the Moonstone with Shadow Weaver’s dark magic until only Adora and Catra were left standing. Adora didn’t want to harm her best friend, but she knew that she might not have a choice if she continued to hurt everyone. Luckily, Adora was spared from having to make a choice when King Micah finally arrived, having broken through whatever traps Shadow Weaver had laid out for him.

The sight of her father alive dramatically calmed her. When all tensions died down, Micah finally told Glimmer everything: how he had been captured years ago, how he had been sent away to serve a life sentence on Beast Island, how Shadow Weaver had been the one to issue the order and left him to rot. The realization that Shadow Weaver had taken her father away and never felt bothered to mention it broke whatever control the old hag held over her and quickly turned on her former mentor.

But in true Shadow Weaver form, she had a backup plan.

Ever since she learned that Catra had been banished to Beast Island, Shadow Weaver knew it was only a matter of time before she lost her place in Bright Moon and began collaborating with Hordak to get back in his good graces. After studying the Whispering Woods long enough, Shadow Weaver found a way to break through whatever enchantment gave it power and opened a path using a spell she had prepared months in advance. With the new opening, the Horde’s armies effortlessly marched on Bright Moon just as they did when Catra led them. The only difference was now that the Princesses were heavily injured and running low on magic to fight back. In no time at all the Horde had completely overtaken Bright Moon. Adora could still remember the way Shadow Weaver boasted of her own brilliance, bragging at how she manipulated them all.

What Shadow Weaver had not been expecting, however, was that the one leading the army would be Scorpia, or that Force Captain would stab her in the back with her stinger, paralyzing her in place while ushering the Princesses into a getaway skiff she had ready. Catra could hardly believe it, but it turned out that Scorpia was still loyal to the Magicat even after everything that happened; she even tried to suffocate Catra in one of her famous hugs just like in the old days. With Scorpia’s help, they managed to get everyone in the Rebellion successfully out of Bright Moon…. Everyone except for Entrapta, who elected to return to Hordak despite the protests of her friends.

Meanwhile, back in the present, it looked like Catra had successfully pried Glimmer off her back when the Magicat fell backwards on top of her. Now it was Catra’s turn to maul the Queen of Bright Moon, both of them rolling across the floor like a couple of roughhousing children. That was when Bow, now slobber-free, came back, narrowly dodging the ball of tangled limbs, and offered one of the cups of fruit punch he brought to Adora, who gratefully accepted.

“So, how’s your night been?” asked Bow politely, ignoring the fight going on at their feet like it was a common occurrence.

“Oddly nostalgic,” said Adora, taking a sip. “I was just thinking about everything that happened during the war.”

“Ooh, I love reminiscing about our adventures!” Bow said excitedly. “What’re you thinking about now?”

“…the day Horde Prime showed up,” Adora answered after a moment’s pause.

“Oh…right, yeah, that was…that was some day, huh?” said Bow, coughing into his fist awkwardly.

That was a severe understatement, Adora thought. After they lost Bright Moon, the Princess Alliance relocated to Halfmoon where they would be protected by the labyrinth of caverns. They had been discussing the plans on how to take back Bright Moon when Scorpia, who still had her old Horde equipment at the time, received a transmission from Entrapta. According to the scientific princess, Hordak had finally created a stable portal using Bright Moon’s runestone as a power source and was planning to bring Horde Prime to Etheria – who Horde Prime was took an hour for Entrapta to explain before they got the general idea. If Hordak was considered the most feared person on Etheria, they didn’t even want to imagine what Horde Prime was like. And with time not on their side, they couldn’t afford to be sneaky like last time – they were going on the offensive.

It surprised Adora how quickly they managed to gather an army to force their way into the Fright Zone. Not only were they able to combine the forces of their respective kingdoms, but Catra managed to convince her old bandit friends from the Crimson Wastes to join as well. And, to Adora’s delight, Huntara was among them, eager to get some payback on her old masters. Catra, of course, was less than pleased to see Adora fawning over the buff woman.

It was a long and difficult struggle, but the princesses managed to force their way into Hordak’s laboratory just as the Horde leader was about to open the portal. But surprisingly, the pale tyrant hesitated, even with his clawed hand firmly grasped around the lever, poised to pull it. That’s when Entrapta revealed the real reason she returned to the Fright Zone: she wanted to convince Hordak that he didn’t need to seek Horde Prime’s approval anymore. That he could stay on Etheria and create a better life – a life with her. But before Hordak had a chance to consider the option, Shadow Weaver predictably stabbed her former master in the back and pulled the lever herself.

When the portal had opened, the princesses had been prepared to fight for their lives. What they had _not _expected, least of all Shadow Weaver, was Queen Angela suddenly emerging through the portal and punching Shadow Weaver clean across the face; It was the single greatest moment of Catra’s life. Micah and Glimmer shared a tearful reunion with the long missing queen, though Adora couldn’t help asking how Angela managed to get back. It turned out that Angela had met a woman named Mara in the dimension between realities who told the queen where she needed to be and to wait patiently for her chance to escape. Adora didn’t know what was more surprising: that Mara was still alive between dimensions or that she somehow knew what was going to happen.

But none of that mattered now. Glimmer’s family was together again, Shadow Weaver was defeated, Hordak was no longer interested in returning to Horde Prime, and their combined armies had managed to overtake the Fright Zone. It had seemed like they finally – at long last – won the war….

Adora should have known it was too good to be true.

Just as they were about to haul Hordak and Shadow Weaver to stand trial for their crimes, the portal suddenly opened by itself. Entrapta checked the systems and realized that the portal was being opened _from the other side._ Adora had transformed into She-Ra and tried to cut the portal like she had done the first one, when someone stepped through the gate and stayed her hand. That was when She-Ra first encountered Horde Prime.

Entrapta had already explained that Hordak was a clone of Horde Prime, but actually seeing it for herself was striking. He resembled a more powerful, lethal version of Hordak with pale-white skin, burning red eyes, and sharp fangs that looked like they could crush bone. Even though She-Ra was considerably tall herself, Horde Prime stood a clean head and shoulders taller than her with muscles that put the Princess of Power to shame. Indeed, the first thing that Horde Prime did was slap She-Ra across the face, which sent her flying through _two _steel walls and left her jaw throbbing for hours.

Shadow Weaver, always true to form, attempted to convince Horde Prime that she had been the one to summon him to Etheria and swore her loyalty to him. But the self-proclaimed emperor of the known universe saw right through her. Horde Prime pulled the old sorceress off the ground by her face and casually tossed her back into the portal, not caring where it had taken her.

Perhaps it was arrogance or overconfidence, but Adora had foolishly tried to fight Horde Prime, believing the power of She-Ra would be enough to defeat him. But not only was Horde Prime stronger than her, but he was surprisingly swift, effortlessly dodging all of her attacks and striking back with quick jabs that rattled her bones. After he essentially slapped her around like a ragdoll, Horde Prime took She-Ra’s left arm and _burned _all the skin off using some energy from the suit he wore. The damage carried over to her normal form, which she immediately fell back to when the pain became too much to bear.

Horde Prime was prepared to kill them all in one swift strike when Hordak suddenly latched himself onto his master, shouting at the Princesses to escape. When Entrapta hesitated to run, Scorpia had no choice but to sting her and carry her dead weight out of the building. Adora, leaning on Catra for support as they dashed away, looked back in time to see Hordak reaching for the crystal that powered his suit and crushed it in his hand, releasing a sort of energy feedback that created a devastating explosion. The last thing they saw as they fled on the stolen skiff was the flames of the Fright Zone towers shining like a beacon in the distance, Entrapta’s soft sniffling filling the silence.

Unfortunately, Horde Prime survived and brought his army to Etheria –

Catra and Glimmer finally disentangled themselves and pulled themselves up off the floor by the railing, wisely standing on either side of Adora and Bow to be as far away from each other as possible.

“Hey…Bow…,” Glimmer wheezed, holding a stitch in her side. “When…did you…get here…?”

“While you and Catra were trying to kill each other – _again_,” he said pointedly; Glimmer looked away, whistling innocently. “Adora and I were just thinking about all the things we did during the war.”

“I love reminiscing about our old adventures!” Glimmer gasped excitedly.

“Me too!” Bow yelled enthusiastically.

“Ugh, it’s like they share the same brain cell,” Catra groaned, bringing a hand down her face. “How is it you two haven’t dated yet?”

_That _certainly got an interesting reaction out of both of them. Bow did an impressive spit take, which had the misfortune of spraying Frosta below, and Glimmer sputtered while flailing her arms frantically, her face turning a brilliant shade of red. Catra obviously knew they would respond this way judging by her playful smirk, but Adora couldn’t bring herself to stop it.

“D-d-d – Bow and I are like – we’re not – “ Glimmer spat wildly. “Me and Bow can’t date each other! We’ve been best friends our whole lives!”

“You mean like that way Adora and I have been best friends our whole lives?” Catra teased, joining her hand with Adora’s to make her point.

“That…that’s different!” said Glimmer, turning desperately to her best friend. “Adora, please say something!”

“I always wondered why you overreacted when Bow went with Perfuma to the Princess Prom,” said Adora, pretending like she just had an epiphany. “But now it all makes sense.”

“You two are the worst!” Glimmer cried, burying her face in her hands.

Adora didn’t feel too bad about teasing her best friend. She personally agreed with Catra and thought Bow and Glimmer would make the perfect couple. She wished that the two of them would realize how much they were meant for each other, but Adora supposed she had no place to cast judgment. After all, she was _completely_ clueless about her own love life for the longest time….

“Uh, h-hey, we’re we just reminiscing about our adventures together?” Bow said with a very forced smile, desperately trying to change the subject. “Where were we at?”

“The final battle against Horde Prime,” Adora answered.

“Yes, that!” Bow shouted unnecessarily loud. “Let’s reminisce together!”

Adora rolled her eyes playfully at her friend, but decided to give them a break – she shot a warning glance at Catra first – and thought back to the final moments of the war.

With the Fright Zone destroyed by Hordak’s sacrifice, Horde Prime had settled in at Bright Moon, appreciating the castle’s ascetic to match his own sense of self-importance. With only the emperor of the known universe as their last obstacle, the Princess alliance gathered every ally they had from the four corners of Etheria to build a single unified army to march on Horde Prime. From the soldiers of the kingdoms, to the bandits of the Crimson Wastes, from the pirates and ne’er-do-wells of Seaworthy, to Entrapta’s platoon of First One machines. But the greatest addition, in Adora’s opinion, had to be the mass defection of Horde soldiers that arrived at the mouth of Halfmoon’s caves, lead by Lonnie, Kyle, and Rogelio. After watching what Horde Prime had done in the Fright Zone, the Horde soldiers understood that he was as much of a threat to them as he was to the Rebellion. With the armor, weapons, and war vehicles provided by the Horde, the Alliance was more prepared than they had ever been.

Then the day came with a roar of cannons and battle cries – the Second Battle of Bright Moon had begun.

It was the single greatest battle in Etheria’s history. The Whispering Woods echoed with the sounds of clashing blades and laser fire while the castle itself seemed to crumble all around them as the battle carried from sunrise to sunset. Both sides had taken heavy losses – the Whispering Woods still carried marks of splattered blood and oil on its branches today – but She-Ra and her allies held strong. Unfortunately, while the United Rebellion had soldiers who experienced pain, hunger, and exhaustion, Horde Prime’s army comprised of tireless, unfeeling machines that carried out its directive regardless of damage.

It was Entrapta who had managed to shift the tide of the war once the Rebellion had captured a working drone mid-battle and brought it back for analysis. The hair princess discovered that the Horde robots ran on a singular mental network connected directly to Horde Prime’s mind, which Entrapta then exploited by uploading a virus that would activate the drone’s self-destruct function. Unfortunately, victory didn’t come without a cost.

In order to upload the virus, they needed an external consciousness to tap into the network and input the virus directly. But whoever went into the network would not be able to escape in time before the network crashed. Entrapta had volunteered to send her own mind into the network when Emily suddenly knocked her away and downloaded itself into the Horde machine. Adora didn’t think that machines were capable of feeling anything – they were just lifeless tools – but the way Emily looked at Entrapta, despite having no facial expression, made Adora think there was more to them than she had imagined. But Emily fulfilled her mission and activated the Horde network’s self-destruct mechanism, wiping out Horde Prime’s army in one fell swoop, but at the expense of Emily the First being completely fried from the inside out, beyond even Entrapta’s scope to repair.

They buried Emily’s body in a place of honor in the Bright Moon gardens.

Then, the final showdown had arrived. Horde Prime had sat waiting in Bright Moon’s throne room, sitting on the seat of power that rightfully belonged to Glimmer, grinning condescendingly as they approached. Their army was heavily exhausted and had too many injured to face Horde Prime, so only the princesses went to meet him. Adora (as She-Ra), Catra, Glimmer, Scorpia, Entrapta, Perfuma, Mermista, Frosta, Netossa, and Spinerella stared down the emperor of the universe as he walked casually down the floating steps, congratulating them for making it this far and promising that he would honor them by writing their defeat in the pages of history.

Adora was just plain sick of this guy – she attacked first and the others followed.

Even with the power of ten princesses fighting as one, it had been an uphill battle. Horde Prime was without a doubt the single greatest enemy that She-Ra had ever fought. No matter how many times they hit him, bound him, drowned him, froze him, and cut him, Horde Prime would always stand back up without any damage to show for it. Even when they combined their attacks, it had done little more than scratch his armor before he sent them flying across the room. And in the span of a half-hour, Horde Prime had forced all the princesses to their knees with Adora (back in her regular form) pressed face down in the floor by Horde Prime’s foot on her back. Their defeat seemed almost certain at that point –

But while they had been fighting Horde Prime, Bow came up with an insane idea that could be the Rebellion's last hope. Joined by Micah, Angela, and Castaspella, he flew Swift Wind all the way to the Crystal Palace, which anyone could now access without Light Hope guarding it. He had remembered Entrapta’s research about the Runestones being connected coupled with everything he learned about the weapon Mara tried to hide and came up with an idea: redirecting all the magical energy from the Runestones into the Sword of Protection! It had taken Bow’s brilliant technical skills and the combined magic of Micah, Angela, and Castaspella to make it work, but they had succeeded.

When Adora suddenly felt a surge of power rushing through her, even in her natural form, she immediately threw Horde Prime of and punched him straight across the chamber, unintentionally destroying the throne in the process. Whatever power surged through Adora seemed to carry to the other princesses as well as they all stood back on their feet, their strength restored and increased tenfold. That had been the turning point of the battle as the princesses pounded Horde Prime back and forth, ripping away his seemingly impenetrable armor until he was stripped bare. It was the first time she had seen the self-proclaimed emperor so fearful as Adora surged forward for the final strike. Horde Prime tried to retaliate, but Catra, with her impressive speed, slashed Horde Prime across the face, leaving him wide open as Adora sliced him across the chest, severing him into two parts on the floor.

And…that was it.

It had seemed almost anticlimactic, standing there in the middle of the silent throne room as the reality of what just happened washed over them. And then…almost like a switch had gone off, the princesses exploded into cheers while Scorpia ran outside to spread the news. In mere moments, all of Bright Moon was alive with joyful cries and tearful screams. Finally, after decades of wars, it was finally over. Peace would finally reign over Etheria…at long last….

Adora had still been numb with shock when it happened that she hadn’t even noticed what was going on around them until she felt a fuzzy hand wrap around her own. She looked over and met Catra’s eyes. They were weak and exhausted, but there was also happiness and serenity behind them that she had never seen before. Adora didn’t know why she did it – she didn’t know why Catra responded in kind – but in that moment, they pulled each other close and shared their first kiss….

“Man…we went through a lot, huh?” Bow’s soft voice brought Adora back to Bright Moon’s ballroom.

“Yeah, tell me about it,” Glimmer murmured. “We spent our entirely lives fighting the war that I almost can’t believe that it’s over. Now I know how Adora felt when she first came to Bright Moon.”

“No, you really don’t – you never got devoured by a pillow,” Adora said jokingly, earning a few chuckles. “But yeah, this whole ‘peace’ thing makes me all antsy. It’s weird not having to train every day or plan out complicated battle strategies…. Is it weird that I actually kinda miss all that?”

“Uh, yeah, like super weird,” Catra snorted. The Magicat suddenly pulled at Adora’s hand and started dragging her along the balcony towards the stairs. “C’mon, I’m sick of this sentimental crap already.”

“You just love kidnapping me, don’t you?” said Adora, laughing.

“Duh, I’m the dom in this relationship,” said Catra as they treaded down the steps two at a time.

“Keep telling yourself that,” Adora taunted. “So, where are you whisking me away this time, princess?”

“The dance floor,” Catra said like it was obvious. “I’ve been at this party all night and I would like to have at least one dance with my fiancé.”

Fiancé…that word made Adora’s chest bubble with warmth every time she heard it.

The proposal came completely out of nowhere last week when the Princess Alliance gathered for its weekly meetings. They had been discussing this very party and Glimmer argued how Bright Moon should be the one to host it when Catra suddenly stood up from her seat. Everyone went quiet as the Magicat suddenly turned on Adora and whipped out a pair of blue crystal pendents cut from the same gemstone – a Magicat proposal tradition C’yra explained afterwards. Catra looked in Adora’s eyes and all but commanded that the two of them get married. The princesses complained that it was the least romantic proposal ever; no getting down on one knee, no sappy speech, not even a dramatic flair. But Adora loved it – it was a very “Catra” thing to do.

She couldn’t say “yes” fast enough.

Adora never thought her life would turn out like this: swaying side-to-side in a fancy Bright Moon ballroom with the love of her life, finally at peace with the world.

She had believed that she and Catra would one day conquer the world and would be the ones in charge. Never would she imagine that that she would find a magic sword that transformed her into a buff goddess, befriend a bunch of princesses, ride a flying unicorn, learn that she was an alien from another world, watch Catra go from being her best friend to her worst enemy to her most intimate lover, or that she would ever get married in a time of peace. Her journey had some good moments and some terrible moments, but Adora could happily say, even if she could go back in time, she wouldn’t change a thing.

“You’re grinning like an idiot,” Catra whispered breathily into her ear.

“How can I not?” Adora murmured in return. “I have my best friends, I have a She-Ra, I have a tray of chocolate with my name on it that Lonnie’s trying to snag” – she tilted her head to the buffet table where the former Horde soldier was stuffing as many chocolate squares in suit pockets as she could – “and most importantly, I have you. My life is perfect….”

“Dork,” Catra purred affectionately. “…So tomorrow’s the big day, huh?”

“Yeah, that’s why Glimmer wanted to throw this party in the first place,” said Adora. “If anything goes wrong, at least we had some great final memories.”

“Everything’s gonna work out fine,” Catra reassured her. “Entraptra built the damn thing – _three times._ She knows what she’s doing…and if not, we can always blame it on Queen glowstick.”

“Yeah,” Adora laughed, staring thoughtfully into space. “Tomorrow’s the day…. Tomorrow…we’re finally leave Despondos….”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The first chapter is most just exposition to explain how the characters reached this point. It's highly unlikely that the canon show will come close to following this route, but I like the idea of Dark!Glimmer and Adora's relationship with her being a mirror to the one she had with Catra. And almost everyone had the idea of Best Dad Micah being a good parent figure for Catra and finding the lost city of the magicats with Catra being the princess.
> 
> The next chapter will get into the real story starting from Adam/He-Man's side of things. I hope you all look forward to it.
> 
> *I wrote the Kingdom of Halfmoon based on the city from the Thundercat (2011) show because my headcanon is that the Magicats are descendants from ancient Thunderian refugees who colonized on Etheria after the destruction of their homeworld, Thundera.
> 
> ** Princess M’ythra’s name and appearance are based on the Mithra from the Final Fantasy series, because I'm a shameless Final Fantasy whore


	2. Stars Crossed, Part 1

It came as a surprise to no one that Castle Grayskull came under attack by Skeletor and his Evil Warriors just barely after dawn broke over Eternia and the Masters of the Universe were called into action to defend the ancient fortress. Echoes of clashing metal, laser fire, howling beasts, and magical explosions rang through the barren field in front of the skull-shaped stronghold, mingled with voices shouting out instructions, warnings, or screaming in pain. Adam would have thought that after four years of doing this that he would be used to used to the sounds of battle by now, but it always filled him with anxiety whenever he heard one of his friends cry out. Thankfully each of them were capable warriors in their own right.

He watched as his friend and mentor, Duncan (also known by his moniker, Man-At-Arms), effectively rolled out of the way of Tri-klops laser and returned with a fiery volley from his arm cannon. Stratos was literally flying circles around Beast Man’s griffins, confusing them until they slammed into each other and fell out of the sky. Ram Man was literally butting heads with Whiplash, though considering the Heroic Warrior made a name for himself by having the thickest skull, it came as no surprise that Whiplash was on the ground instantly. Man-E-Faces and Trap Jaw were locked in a struggle of dominance, both using mechanical and monster strength to outdo one another. Even Mekaneck was holding his own against the dimwitted Clawful despite his less-than-useful power.

And finally, there was Teela. Adam watched with a stupid grin on his face as the brash young woman effortlessly disarmed Mer-Man with a flick of her snake-headed staff, flipped over him while pressing her weapon against his neck, and threw the Aquatican over her shoulder like a flailing fish. When Mer-Man tried to stand again, Teela leapt into the air and landed on the back of his head with a resounding _thud_, planting him face first into the dirt where he went limp. And as she stepped away from her fallen adversary, she turned towards Adam and shouted across the field:

“He-Man, above you!”

Oh, right, that was another thing he should have mentioned. He wasn’t Adam, the cowardly and lazy Prince of Eternia right now. He was currently He-Man, the most powerful man in the universe and defender of the secrets of Castle Grayskull. And right now, he should probably be listening to Teela.

He-Man turned his attention to the sky, raising his Sword of Power just in time to block the twin swords wielded by his archenemy, Skeletor. The ground cracked underneath He-Man’s feet as a result of the force behind Skeletor’s attack, but the mighty warrior did not buckle. He-Man gritted his teeth as he pushed back against Skeletor’s weapons, staring into the skull-faced villain’s empty eye sockets, which had gained a red glow which He-Man recognized as a sign of his rising anger.

Skeletor was always a surprising adversary no matter how many times He-Man had fought him. He was a powerful combination of a skilled swordsman, a cunning tactician, a scientific genius, and a gifted sorcerer all rolled up into one. In all of their previous battles, He-Man cannot deny that the only reason he ever won was because of his magically enhanced strength and the aid of the Masters. Skeletor had taken advantage of this fact more than once in the past and it nearly killed him on several accounts, but He-Man had learned from each experience and could almost predict what Skeletor was going to do next.

He-Man allowed Skeletor to get closer, fooling him into thinking that the skull-faced sorcerer was starting to overpower him. Then, once he was within reach, He-Man kicked Skeletor in the abdomen with a little bit of super strength and knocked the villain into the ground. The master of evil created a deep trench in the dirt, building up a small mound behind him as he came to a stop. Skeletor grounded his teeth as he leaned sideways against the dirt pile, holding his latest injury while trying to push himself to his knees. The skull-faced villain didn’t get far before He-Man stood over him like a looming shadow, leering down at his archenemy with his Sword of Power inches away from Skeletor’s bony chin.

“This is the part where you surrender now,” said He-Man. “Just like you always do.”

“Grr…if you think I will give up that easily, He-Man, you are sorely mistaken,” Skeletor growled, his eye sockets flaring red.

He threw out his hand, mentally summoning his Havoc Staff to his aid from its place where it fell earlier in battle. The ram-skulled weapon levitated off the ground and shot across the field, knocking away everyone in its path regardless if they were a Master or an Evil Warrior. The staff was only feet away from reaching Skeletor’s outstretched hand when He-Man suddenly surged forward and snatched the staff out of the air. Skeletor jaw almost came unhinged as he stared up at He-Man; the Havoc Staff was vibrating in his powerful hand, trying to break free, but He-Man’s grip was unrelenting. And in a bit of ironic humor, He-Man smacked Skeletor across his bony face with his own staff, dropping him back to his hands and knees.

“Did you even come here with a plan, Skeletor?” He-Man asked. “Making an all-out assault of Castle Grayskull despite knowing that the Masters are keeping a constant watch isn’t one of your better ideas. Has that big head of yours finally run out of ideas?”

“Don’t you dare mock me…,” Skeletor hissed in a low voice. “When I have the power hidden inside Castle Grayskull, I will – “

“You’re never going to get it, Skeletor,” said He-Man, now looking a little exasperatedly. “You’ve been trying for four years and you’ve never even made it past the castle gates. Every plan you’ve tried, every scheme you’ve ever come up with, they’ve always ended in failure. And it’s not just you, either. King Hiss, Hordak, Count Marzo, Evilseed – they’ve all tried and none of them succeeded, so you’re nothing special.”

“Don’t you dare compare me to those worthless peons…,” Skeletor snarled furiously.

“This has been going on long enough, Skeletor,” said He-Man. “No matter how hard you try, you will never be able to get inside Castle Grayskull unless it opens its gates willingly, and we both know that will never happen. It’s time to face facts: you can’t win, no matter how hard you try.”

The angry flare in Skeletor’s eyes seemed to die out in that instant and just stared up at He-Man with a long, contemplative stare…. Then, he suddenly held out his hand and closed his fist in the air. The eyes of the Havoc Staff ignited with magical energy before He-Man realized what was happening and unleashed an explosive yellow field that sent the Man of Power flying through the air, unconsciously plowing into Ram Man. He-Man rubbing his throbbing temple with a groan, rising to his feet, muttering an apology to Ram Man, and stared down Skeletor as he also stood up and grasped his levitating staff. He-Man and Skeletor engaged in a long, heated staring contest, though He-Man had the strangest feeling that Skeletor wasn’t looking at him, but though him, as if searching for something that wasn’t quite there.

And then, to his surprise, Skeletor turned his back to He-Man and called out, “Everyone…we’re leaving!”

It was like someone had flipped a switch. Both the Masters and the Evil Warriors stopped what they were doing and turned as one toward Skeletor. It wasn’t the fact that he was calling for a retreat that surprised them – it was considered his catchphrase at this point – but the way he acted so calmly when he is usually screaming at the top of his lungs. Some of the Evil Warriors shared mystified looks before they started running, vanishing in the forest beyond Castle Grayskull’s border (except Clawful, who stomped back. grabbed the unconscious Mer-Man by his ankle, and dragged his behind). Skeletor was the last to leave, but there was none of his usual theatrics upon his exit. No magical attacks to knock them off their feet, no automated vehicles crashing into them, no declaration of revenge – he just walked away as calm and cool as can be with his back exposed to He-Man as if he wasn’t worried the mighty warrior wouldn’t attack. And to be fair, he didn’t – He-Man wasn’t dishonest like that.

He-Man narrowed his eyes suspiciously until his archenemy was out of sight as the Masters joined him at his side.

“Soooo…we’re just gonna let them go?” asked Mekaneck in an understandably confused tone.

“We won the battle,” said He-Man. “That’s all that really matters.”

“Skeletor was acting really strange at the end,” Teela commented. “Usually he’d say ‘This isn’t over, He-Man!’ or ‘The power of Grayskull will be mine!’ or something like that.”

“Yeah, it’s funny when he does that,” Ram Man chuckled.

“There was definitely something off about Skeletor after our fight,” said He-Man thoughtfully, turning to Man-At-Arms. “Do you think he’s up to something?”

“Could be,” said Man-At-Arms, regarding the question with equal misgivings. “For now, the only thing we can do is stay on our guard and wait for the next inevitable attack. Whatever he has planned, you can rest assured that Skeletor will never give up.”

* * *

When the Evil Warriors had returned to Snake Mountain in Eternia’s Dark Hemisphere, Skeletor had swiftly moved to his throne and seated himself as he usually did when they came back from their most recent defeat. But when the Evil Warrior’s gathered around the base of the throne, awaiting to hear their master’s latest rant, they were surprised when none came. Skeletor leaned back into the shadow of his seat, his bony face obscured by darkness, absently caressing Panthor’s fur while seemingly staring into nothingness. The Evil Warriors leaned back and forth on the balls of their feet awkwardly, making very little noise while sharing nervous glances. When Beast Man let out a rather disgusting snort, the Evil Warriors flinched and expected Skeletor to reprimand him, but nothing came. He just kept sitting and staring off into space….

Now they were concerned.

“Uh…you gonna say something to him?” Trap Jaw whispered to Tri-klops.

“Me?” Tri-klops hissed anxiously. “Why should I be the one to talk to him?”

“Because he likes you best,” Trap Jaw argued.

“No, he likes Evil-Lyn best,” spat Tri-Klops.

“Well, she’s not here now on account she betrayed us for those Snake Men and Hordak – “ Beast Man grumbled.

“Stop talking, you idiot!” Mer-Man squeaked. “Skeletor doesn’t like it when we talk about them – “

“Well, someone’s going to have to talk to him,” said Whiplash worriedly. “He hasn’t said a word since the Masters beat us…again. He’s really starting to scare me – more than he usually does.”

“Duh, maybe we should take a vote,” Clawful suggested helpfully.

“Agreed,” Tri-Klops said immediately. “All in favor of Clawful doing it?”

Every single hand instantly flew up and everyone looked expectantly at the Karikoni. The crab man really should have seen this coming when he made the decision to vote, but there was no point in arguing about it. Stupid democracy, Clawful thought spitefully as he hesitantly approached the steps of Skeletor’s throne.

“Er…Skeletor…sir…are you okay?” he asked tentatively. “You’ve been awfully quiet since we got back. Do you have a stomachache or….”

“Four years…,” Skeletor murmured. His voice was softer than usual, but the Evil Warrior still flinched as if they had been struck with a whip. “I’m just now realizing it, but it really has been four years since all this started. When I broke the mystic wall separating us from the Light Hemisphere, when I first laid waste to Randor’s kingdom, when I began this long and tiresome crusade for the power of the Elders.

“Four long years…and what do I have to show for it? When I am on the verge of conquest, He-Man appears, seemingly out of nowhere, and thwarts every evil scheme I could possibly conceive. The Master’s ranks swell with each passing day with Randor’s little Eternian Council only making thing more difficult. And if that wasn’t enough, Evil-Lyn, the only competent one among my Evil Warriors, betrayed me, setting free both Hiss and Hordak to contest my rule as the rightful conqueror of the world. But do you know what the worst part is?” Skeletor’s voice rose several octaves, his eye sockets glowing furiously, as he leaned forward into the light to show his dissatisfaction. “The worst part is that I am forever stuck with the biggest bunch of losers in all of Eternia!”

“Aw, you didn’t need to say that,” Beast Man whimpered. Everyone else quickly jumped out of the way before Skeletor blasted him with his Havoc Staff.

“For four years, I have tried stealing the power of the Elders from Castle Grayskull!” Skeletor roared angrily as he rose from his throne, stomping his way down the stairs, “and not once have I even come close to reaching it as Hiss and Hordak no doubt have! I’ve tried breaking those accursed walls with the Ram Stone! I tried destroying the castle with dragons and Shadowbeasts! I tried entering through Subternia! I even put together a Council of Evil to destroy the Masters and march onto Grayskull! But every – single – time I am met with utter failure!”

He slammed his Havoc Staff on the floor to emphasize his frustration, creating a explosive wave of magical energy that threw his Evil Warrior across the chamber, slamming them against the stone walls. The Evil Warriors, far too used to be tossed around like ragdolls, were quick to get back on their feet, but there was a noticeable shift in their leader’s demeanor that they couldn’t help noticing. Skeletor’s shoulders were slumped, his bony face bowed, his whole body barely leaning against his staff as if he had suddenly lost the strength to stand on his own accord. The master of evil released a long, tired sigh through his teeth, his voice unnaturally soft when he next spoke:

“Perhaps He-Man…was right. Even before he appeared, I’ve tried for decades to conquer Eternia with no success. Maybe…maybe it’s time to finally hang up the cloak.”

“Now, now, let’s not be hasty, Skeletor,” said Tri-klops nervously. “You’re just having a bad day, that’s all. A little rest and you’ll surely be fit to take Castle Grayskull – “

“And I suppose you have a plan,” Skeletor interrupted sharply, glaring at his minion, “to breach the mystic walls of Castle Grayskull and steal the unparalleled power of the Elders?”

“Well…no – “

**_BAM!_** Tri-klops was shot into the wall yet again by Skeletor’s Havoc Staff. The bone-faced sorcerer leered at his Evil Warriors for a moment, turned around, and walked away. Before he exited the chamber, he paused briefly and glanced over his shoulder.

“I don’t care what you buffoons do with yourselves,” said Skeletor harshly. “You can jump into the magma pits for all I care, but don’t bother me ever again. As far as I am concerned, the Evil Warriors are no more….”

And with that final declaration, Skeletor left his former henchmen stupefied on the floor.

None of them were aware of the pair of haunting white eyes watching them from the shadows, narrowing in a sort of satisfied expression….

* * *

**_Clang_**!

Adam’s Power Sword clashed with Teela’s cobra staff, sparks flying on contact, as they circled one another on the concrete platform in the palace training grounds. Adam would have preferred to escape to his secret sleeping spot in the stables after yet another exhausting battle with Skeletor, but Teela had already started pulling him to the training grounds by the time they returned to Eternos. So, with all his whining and protests ignored, Adam found himself swinging his sword at the opening Teela provided on her left side, only realizing too late that she had did so intentionally and jumped out of the way, smacking him in the back of the head with her staff as he stumbled past. The Prince of Eternia grumbled, massaging the fresh lump on his skull as he focused his attention back on Teela, who was twirling her staff with a condescending smirk.

“Seriously, are you even trying right now?” Teela taunted the prince. “You can kick Skeletor all the way to the Dark Hemisphere, but you can’t even land a hit on a weak little girl? I don’t know whether to feel smug or offended.”

“Please, there’s nothing weak or little about you,” Adam retorted.

It was true; Teela was much taller than average, even standing a few inches above her own father, and her muscles were as lean and strong as chiseled marble. Teela could easily beat more than half the Masters in an arm-wrestling contest and wore attire that not only displayed her muscles, but also her many hard-earned battle scars. The most prominent among them was the vicious series of bite marks that ran down the length of her right arm when King Hiss bit her with all five of his snake heads and nearly killed Teela with his toxin. But none of this took away from her natural beauty, of which Adam could not deny she had and admittedly found himself staring at her at times over the past few years. She looked more like her mother every day, he thought….

That had been something that Adam was not prepared to learn. He had stumbled upon their conversation by accident, but Adam had overheard Man-At-Arms locked in a heated conversation with the Sorceress of Grayskull when Adam went looking for answers his latest crisis against Skeletor. When he had heard Man-At-Arms calls the Sorceress Teela’s mother, Adam had gasped a little too loud and tripped over his own boots, stumbling into the open. The Sorceress made Adam vow never to tell Teela the truth until she was ready, and though Adam argued that Teela had the right to now, he agreed nonetheless. Though at least once a day, Adam almost calls Teela the Sorceress due to their similar faces, but always catches himself at the last second with some flimsy excuse.

Why is my life so complicated, Adam thought exasperatedly….

“Keep your head in the game, your majesty!” Teela shouted suddenly.

Adam snapped his head up just in time to block Teela’s jumping strike with his Power Sword. The Prince of Eternia slid his blade up the length of Teela’s staff and locked it into the crook of the cobra figure at the top. The two of them pushed against each other with all their might, neither willing to buckle under the other.

“Come on, where’s that amazing strength of yours, _O’ great He-Man?_” Teela said teasingly.

“A little louder, would ya?” said Adam, finally shoving her away. “I don’t think they heard you in Subternia.”

There were times – often when she was poking fun at him – that Adam regret letting Teela find out he was He-Man. Though in his defense, he wasn’t in much of a position to stop it from happening.

It had been a little over two years ago when Evil-Lyn finally released Hordak from his magical imprisonment and the Masters had arrived to intercept, only to find that they were too late. While Skeletor was He-Man’s craftiest enemy, and King Hiss was a magical threat, Hordak was a terror of raw power that effortlessly overwhelmed the Masters in only a few swings. Even He-Man was thoroughly defeated when Hordak ripped the Sword of Power from his hand and plunged the blade into his chest. Teela managed to get He-Man’s dying form onto Battlecat while the Masters provided covering fire and raced all the way to Castle Grayskull. But when they were finally a safe distance away from the others, He-Man’s form involuntarily shifted back and Teela soon found herself carrying Adam’s limp body in her arms on Cringer’s back. Needless to say, Adam had a lot of explaining to do after the Sorceress healed him with the Power of the Elders.

The memory of that incident made Adam unconsciously scratch as the X-shaped scar underneath his shirt. It had been one of many changes that the Prince of Eternia had been gifted with since he first took up the Power Sword. Though Teela was practically an amazon, Adam had her evenly matched in height – he didn’t know if it was because of He-Man’s influence or because of his own genetics since King Randor was a pretty tall guy himself. The increase of his muscle growth had also drawn a few stares from people, mostly out of surprise because everyone believed he was a cowered that ran from a fight, so Adam had taken to wear loose, long-sleeved jackets to hide his arms. It also covered up the various battle wounds that had transitioned over from his He-Man form like the burn mark on his right shoulder where Kobra Khan sprayed him with his acidic venom, the pair of jagged scars from when Skeletor had, unsurprisingly, stabbed him in the back during a temporary team-up against Hordak, and the black veins on his left forearm that came as a result of Evil-Lyn’s dark magic.

Adam wished he could show everyone without having to explain anything because he honestly thought he looked badass.

“I still don’t get why you don’t just tell everyone you’re He-Man,” said Teela, slapping her staff back and forth against the prince’s sword. “You know you can trust the Masters to keep a secret. Besides, maybe then people won’t think you’re a big loser.”

“Number one, no one thinks I’m a loser,” said Adam, taking a swing back. “And number two, it’s not that I don’t trust them, it’s just being cautious. Remember when Ram Man was brainwashed by Evil-Lyn. I can’t take the chance of any of my enemies finding out I’m He-Man. It would just put them in danger.”

“Everyone is already in danger,” Teela argued. “We can't go a week without some villain trying to conquer Eternia.”

“I know, but if anyone finds out that Prince Adam is He-Man, they’ll start targeting me outside of my He-Man form,” said Adam, frowning. “Not to sound cocky, but a lot of the battles we fought were only won because we had He-Man’s strength. If they take me out as Adam, then He-Man will be gone forever and everyone I love will be in danger. My friends, my family, you. As much as I would love everyone to stop thinking I’m a chicken who runs away at the first sign of trouble, I just can’t take that risk.”

“So…what make me different?” Teela asked suddenly.

“Huh?”

“You talked about protecting your friends and family, but mentioned me separately,” Teela said teasingly, slapping away another swing. “What? Do you love me differently than you do everyone else?”

“Uh, well, um,” Adam sputtered, his face suddenly feeling warm. “You, um, well, what I meant was, uh….”

Logically, Adam should have seen it coming – Teela has been pulling this stunt since they were kids – but he was too embarrassed to even form a coherent sentence before Teela suddenly swooped down and knocked him to the ground with a leg sweep. Adam pushed himself up by his elbows, only to be pinned in place by Teela’s staff. The warrior woman gave him the usual smug smile every time she won their sparring matches.

“Cheap shot,” Adam grumbled.

“If Skeletor only knew how easy it was to knock you flat,” said Teela, chuckling.

“I’d rather we keep that to ourselves, thank you, Teela,”a new voice joined entered the grounds.

Adam and Teela turned toward the palace steps and saw King Randor standing halfway up with his fists on his hips, looking down at the pair of them with a knowing sort of grin. Though still tall and very fit, the king’s auburn hair was coated with many streaks of gray brought on by the many stress-filled years of fighting off the various villains of Eternia. Teela immediately bowed to her king while Adam picked himself up and brushed himself off.

“Father, what’re you doing here?” asked Adam.

“The better question is, where have you been, son?” said Randor. “I’ve been searching the palace for hours. I had almost though you fell off the face of Eternia. Where’ve you been hiding this whole time?”

“Oh, well, you know…,” said Adam, scratching the back of his hands while his eyes roamed around as if expecting to find an answer. “I was just….”

“I found him sleeping in the stables with Cringer as we were coming back from our battle with Skeletor,” Teela answered quickly. Adam could kiss her right now…out of appreciation! Not because of…you know. “It looked like he had been there since this morning. I thought a little sparring would be just the thing to wake him up.”

“Hmm, I could have sworn the guards searched the stables,” Randor hummed, brushing his beard thoughtfully. “Well, it does not matter. Adam, your mother and I wish to speak with you. It’s…rather important.”

“Coming, father,” said Adam. He returned his Power Sword to its scabbard and shot a look at Teela. “And I will get you back for that cheap trick later.”

“I’d like to see you try,” Teela challenged.

Adam stuck his tongue out childishly, to which Teela only rolled her eyes, before following his father up the steps and into the palace corridors. They walked in silence as they walked to the opposite side of the castle, which Adam knew was a bad sign. Usually when his father was this quiet, it meant he was angry about something that Adam did (probably involving one of the diplomats that visited), or he was thinking about giving Adam another lecture about responsibility and his eventual rise to king. Randor didn’t say anything until they climbed the steps to the second floor and turned down another long corridor.

“Your twentieth birthday is approaching in a couple weeks,” he said, hands folded behind his back. “Before you know it, it will be your time to reign as king, Adam.”

Great, another lecture on responsibility, Adam thought.

“And as such, your mother and I felt there was something you needed to learn,” Randor continued.

“What? Proper table settings again?” asked Adam, withholding a groan. “How to bow properly? Don’t let Orko anywhere near the flower garden.”

“No, those are all common sense,” said Randor, chuckling at the last point. They turned another corner and walked down another long corridor, which Adam knew took them directly to his parent’s bed chamber. What surprised Adam was that his father’s expression suddenly turned somber, thoughtful, and almost…mournful “No, this is something more…personal. Your mother and I have been talking back and forth on this matter since you were a child, and, well, we think you’re old enough to know.”

Okay, now Adam was really concerned. His father only acted this way when the news he was about to deliver was grave, and when it involved his mother, that usually made it ten times worse.

They reached the end of the long corridor, which was surprisingly empty of the security soldiers usually stationed there, and opened the double doors into his parent’s unnecessarily large bedchamber. Sitting on the edge of their wide bed, they found Adam’s mother, Queen Marlena, staring wistfully at something laid across her lap. Adam had to tilt his head to see, but it looked like an old swaddling blanket, pink in color. Marlena looked up when her son and husband entered the chamber and closed the doors behind them, offering up a tired smile as she stood, holding the blanket close to her bosom. Randor took his place by Marlena’s side, offering a loving peck to her temple, and held her supportively as they both turned their attention on Adam.

“Adam, thank you for joining us,” said Marlena softly. “How are you? Are you feeling well today?”

“I’m fine, though a little paranoid now,” Adam answered honestly. “What’s with the blanket?”

“Oh, this?” said Marlena, holding up the pink fabric. “This is…part of what we wanted to speak to you about. We’ve had this with us since the day you were born.”

“Well, don’t tell Teela that,” said Adam jokingly. “If she finds out you had me in a girl’s baby blanket, she’ll never let me hear the end of it.”

“Actually…it’s not yours,” said Randor sorrowfully, resting one of his large hands on his wife’s, clutching the blanket. “It belonged…to your sister.”

If someone were to drop a pin on the floor, it would sound like thunder in the silent chamber. Adam looked at his parents, almost expecting them to say “Gotcha!”, but their expressions of remorse were so genuine that it didn’t seem to be a prank.

“W-w-wait a minute,” Adam sputtered, waving his hands around. “A sister? I have a – since when do I have a sister?”

“Since the day you were born,” said Randor somberly. “Almost twenty years ago, we were blessed with twins. You were born first, and then your sister was born not long after. You two were so beautiful together. It was the proudest day of my life,” he added with a ghost of a smile.

“Okay, you’re not making any sense,” said Adam, shaking his head. “You’re telling me I’ve had a had a sister – a twin sister – all my life and I never knew about it? How? Why? You’re going to have to explain this to me, father, because I don’t understand how I could grow up without my own sister, if she’s even real.”

“Your sister is very real, Adam,” said Randor firmly. “And the reason why we never told you was because…because it is difficult for us to talk about….” He took a deep breath, pressing his head into his free hand like he was trying to fight off a painful headache. Marlena took the hand away and held it in her own, offering a kind smile, which her husband returned. “Adam…what you have to understand was that not only was your birth the proudest day of my life…it was also the day of my greatest failure…. The day I couldn’t save your sister….”

* * *

A much younger King Randor kneeled beside Marlena upon their bed, his queen exhausted and gleaming in sweat from the hours of hard labor she had endured, but her eyes filled with unbridled joy and love. The young king kissed his wife’s hand, requesting that she rest to regain her strength, then stood up and walked to the pair of cribs that had be set up at their bedside.

Randor leaned over the cribs, gazing upon his newborn children – a son and a daughter, both of them blessed with tufts of golden hair (though how that is possible since neither he nor Marlena were blonde is a mystery) and shimmering blue eyes. While his daughter was blissfully sleeping away, Randor’s son was fidgety and reaching out with his tiny hands, exploring the new world he was born into. Randor smiled and picked up his newborn son, gently rocking him in his arms hoping to lull him to sleep.

“**I had never known such happiness until you two were born,**” Randor narrated. “**In you both, I could see unlimited potential. I saw a bright and wonderful future where my children would grow up never knowing the evils that lurked in the Dark Hemisphere, never having to know war, and leading Eternia to a prosperous golden age. In that moment, I had sworn that I would love and protect you both with my very life.**

“**I had not realized that my dedication would be tested so swiftly.**”

A thunderous _boom _ripped through the bedchamber without warning; Randor instinctively turned his body to shield his son while both his children cried from the loud noises that frightened them. The king turned and gazed in awe as the swirling vortex of strange pinkish-purple energy that had randomly ripped the air only a couple feet from the cribs. Before Randor could think of what to do, a clawed hand reached around the edges of the portal and something…unspeakable followed suit.

It was a gangly sort of creature, humanoid in appearance, but its skin was bleached white, it’s face narrowed with pointed ears and glowing-red eyes as it bared its similarly colored fangs to the new world. It donned a suit of armor that looked entirely mechanical bearing an insignia of a pair of red bat wings, a symbol that itched in the back of Randor’s mind, but couldn’t place where he had seen it from. The intruder shuffled forward, breathing heavily as if it had been through a terrible ordeal, but as its burning eyes shifted upwards toward Randor, the monster snarled lightly and stood at full height, clenching his fists ready for a fight.

“**Some…thing just appeared in a strange portal the likes I have never seen**,” said Randor. “**I didn’t know what it was or where it had come from, but I knew my family was in danger and I needed to act.**”

The doors to the bedchamber slammed against the marble walls as three soldiers of the royal guard, no doubt alerted by the thunderous boom of the portal, rammed their way inside with their weapons raised. All of them look equally as stunned as Randor did when they first caught sight of the creature, but immediately shrugged it off when they realized their king was in danger. The guards rushed the pale monster, but the creature effortlessly lifted two of them in the air and threw them aside before backhanding the third one, rendering them all unconscious.

King Randor, with his son still safely nestled against his chest, dashed over to their bedside and retrieved his sword – a good king always remembers to have a weapon nearby in case of emergencies.

With a harsh battlecry, Randor launched himself at the intruder and slashed his sword diagonally across its chest. The pale beast raised its arms to defend itself, hissing when Randor’s sword slashed through its armor and exposed the pale flesh underneath. Randor quickly followed with a backhanded slash, successfully cutting a deep gash in the monster’s chestplate that caused the creature to stumble back toward the portal from whence it came. With the monster disoriented, Randor gritted his teeth and slammed his knuckles into the creature’s face, drawing blood from its lips as it fell backwards into the vortex.

To Randor’s horror, the pale demon reached its hands out, looking for something to anchor itself with, and unknowingly grabbed the edge of his daughter’s crib, pulling her into the portal with it. Randor lunged forward to pull his daughter back, but she had already fallen through the vortex with the pale beast, which had immediately closed behind them. The young king fell to his knees, the horrified expression of his face still present as his hand continued to reach out into the empty air as if it would somehow magically bring his child back.

He was only half aware of Marlena’s soft sobs underneath his son’s louder cries.

“**It had all happened so fast,**” said King Randor. “**In one moment, I was the happiest man in all of Eternia, looking forward to a life where I could raise my children in peace. And then the next, I watched helplessly as half of my heart was stolen before my very eyes.**”

* * *

Adam had taken a seat on the edge of his parent’s bed halfway through the story, his chin rested on his folded hands as he stared distantly at the floor.

He didn’t know how he was supposed to feel right now. Upset because he had a twin sister that his parents never told him about? Angry because some creature stole his twin before he could even see her? Sad because he spent her whole life never having a chance grow up with her, play in the mud with her, explore the Corridors of Lithos together, share secrets just between them, tease her about boys, her teasing him about Teela, fight alongside each other…share the secret of He-Man with her? Adam was honestly about his emotions right now....

He raised his head to his parents. Randor was quiet and downcast while Marlena looked to be on the verge of crying, but couldn’t because she had no more tears to shed.

“…And you never found her?” Adam asked quietly.

“I tried – for many years,” said Randor. “I scoured all of Eternia for her, but I never found any trace of where they might be. Eventually, I came to assume the worst and decided that your sister was truly gone forever.”

"I still remember her beautiful eyes when she was born," Marlena murmured. “We never even had a chance to name her."

“It wasn’t until recently I recognized the symbol the creature’s armor,” said Randor. “It resembles the mark worn by Hordak’s soldiers; the thief even bared a small resemble to him.”

“You think Hordak might have taken her?” asked Adam hopefully, jumping up to his feet. “You think he still has her.”

“It’s impossible to tell,” said Randor. “It’s been almost twenty years since then. If Hordak did take your sister, I don’t imagine she would have survived long.”

Any hope in Adam immediately died on the spot. Unfortunately, his father was right – Hordak has once killed one of his own general simply for bringing bad news; Adam didn’t imagine a newborn child would last long under his wrath. The young prince fell back on the bed with a defeated sigh.

“Why…?” said Adam. “Why are you telling me this? After keeping it a secret for twenty years, why tell me now?”

“We…don’t have any real reason,” Randor explained pitifully. “It’s just that…lately, I’ve been dreams – nightmares, really – of that day repeating in my sleep every night for over several weeks now. I haven’t thought about your sister’s kidnapping for a long time, but I keep seeing her more strongly every day. I don’t know if it’s just a simple remembrance of the past…or a premonition of what’s to come….”

* * *

Adora tilted her head back, letting out an impressed whistle.

It had been a long time since she set foot in the Horde training simulator – two years, to be exact – though it didn’t look anything like the training room she once knew. The octagonal patterned floor had been ripped up to expose the thick tangle of multicolored wires underneath, all of which were now hooked up to the grease-covered silver ring in the middle of the chamber. Only this portal generator wasn’t like the last two that Entrapta built – it was monolithic, standing over thirty feet tall that it nearly touched the ceiling and was wide enough to fit an entire battalion side-by-side. At the base of the soon-to-be portal was a small electronic pedestal hooked up to just as many colorful wires with a thin slot that was a perfect fit for her sword just as Entrapta had designed it.

And speaking of whom, the technological princess was climbing the side of the portal generator with her prehensile hair, inserting the last of the cables near the top, and then practically free-fell back to the ground. Adora nearly had a heart attack for the seventh time that day, but Entrapta caught herself using her hair as a cushion and casually waddled over to the control console on the side of the room. Adora had put up an argument that Entrapta should not be straining herself when she was seven months into pregnancy, but the hair princess firmly denied her request, declaring very loudly, “Nothing will stand in the way of science! Not even the biological process of creating life! Emily the Second, bring me the decahedral spanner!”

Adora really wished she took more consideration for own child’s safety than she did in make new, more dangerous machines.

“Are you sure this is going to work?” Adora asked as the princess fiddled with the controls. “It’s not going to – I don’t know – tear the fabric of reality apart again, is it?”

“That incident was merely a one-on-ten million occurrence that was the result of your sword’s unstable energy feedback coupled with a lack of understanding of temporal-space dynamics,” Entrapta babbled so quickly that Adora almost didn’t catch it. “Several portals have been created to and from Etheria over the span of the last fifty years, as proven by yours and Hordak’s arrival, both of which did not cause the end of the world as we know it. Ours chances are significantly better this time around.”

“And what makes you say that?” asked Adora.

“I created this new portal using the leftover technology from Horde Prime’s spacecraft, so it will be twenty-hundred and twenty-two percent stronger than the last few attempts. Since the Runestones are connected by the planet itself, the Princesses should in theory be able generate a field that will cover all of Etheria while simultaneously redirecting the Sword of Protection’s volatile energy feedback into a single focusing point, essentially turning to sword into a steering wheel for the planet. Your job is the easy part: steering Etheria through the interdimensional barrier out of Despondos and into the greater universe.”

“That’s the easy part?” Adora gaped.

“Okay, all systems check out!” Entrapta declared eagerly, ignoring Adora's terrified face. She jabbed her thumb to a button beneath an intercom on the side of the console and all but screamed, “We’re all set to go in the Fright Zone! Is everyone ready?”

“_Bright Moon is ready!_” Glimmer’s voice chirped in response.

“_Woo-hoo, we are out of here!_” Bow cheered from the background.

“_Plumeria is ready to become one with the universe,_” said Perfuma breathily.

“_Salineas is ready to…whatever…,_” Mermista said lethargically as ever.

“_I, too, am ready to aid this valiant endeavor with a toe-tapping shanty I have composed – _“ Sea Hawk chimed in.

There was a sound of rushing water over the intercom and the sound of Mermista drowning her husband, again. Adora shook her head; she will never understand their strange relationship.

“_The Kingdom of Snows is ready to begin,_” Frosta answered seriously.

“_We’re all set on our end,_” came Netossa’s voice.

“_Preparations are finished here as well,_” Spinerella joined soon after.

“_The Black Garnet is all set up in Scorpion Hill!_” Scorpia’s voice joined the conversation, sounding every bit as eager as Entrapta. “_I can’t believe this is actually happening! I mean, obviously I can believe it, because it is happening, but I can’t believe it’s happening! I wonder what the people in the other universe are like. I hope they’re friendly. You think they make tiny food like Entrapta does?_” She suddenly let out an excited gasp. “_Do you think they have Kalteneckers there?_”

“_I’m sorry, what did you just say?_” Mermista asked across the channel.

“_Kalteneckers_,” Scorpia repeated.

“_What in the name of Etheria is a Kaltenecker?_” asked Frosta.

“_I don’t know,_” said Scorpia. “_Horde Prime said I looked like one during the final battle._”

“_Oh, sweetie, I don’t think he meant that as a compliment,_” said Perfuma soothingly.

“Half-Moon, are you ready to begin?” Entrapta jabbed the intercom again when one princess failed to call in. “Helloooooo, Half-Moon, are you ready to begin? Half-Moon? Hello, Half-Moon? Catra, are you doing that thing where you’re ignoring me again? Catra? Catra? Catra-Catra-Catra-Catra-Catra-Catra-Catra-Catra-Catra-Catra-Catra-Catra-“

“_I’m here already – SHUT UP!_” Catra harsh voice snapped over the speakers, making everyone who was listening jump.

“_What took you so long?_” Glimmer asked irritably.

“_Well, excuse me, _your majesty, _but I have big sister responsibilities too, you know,_” Catra hissed.

“_Something happen to M’ythra?_” Bow asked concerned; bless his heart.

“_Nothing I couldn’t handle,_” Catra answered vaguely. “_Now let’s get a move on. My butt’s falling asleep._”

“All right, everyone is accounted for,” said Entrapta, turning her attention to Adora. “Whenever you’re ready.”

Nodding in confirmation, Adora removed her golden bracelet, which instantly transformed into the Sword of Protection. It had been six months since she had last said these powerful words, since she had needed to say them, but “For the Honor of Grayskull!” fell from her lips so easily as if it were just yesterday. Adora closed her eyes as she was bathed in a golden light and felt the familiar alien sensation when she always transformed, like she was still herself, but in another person’s body, which she technically was when she thought about it. When the light passed away, Adora was now standing two feet taller than normal, weighted down by the tightly compacted muscles under her skin, and the familiar chill of her pants being _waaay _too short than she was actually comfortable with.

Adora was She-Ra once more.

“Preparations are complete!” said Entrapta enthusiastically, her fingers flying across the console. “All conditions have been met! Energy flux stabilized! All right, everybody, on the count of three, channel your Runestones into She-Ra’s sword! Ready? One…two…three!”

She-Ra widened her stance in front of the electronic pedestal, bracing herself with both hands tightly wrapped around the sword’s hilt. There had only been one instance where she had taken all the power of the Runestones into herself and Adora wasn’t afraid to admit that she almost lost control when she did. But she knew it was coming now – she was mentally prepared for this –

Until it actually hit her.

The magic struck her from every direction at once, nearly knocking She-Ra off her feet, but quickly steadied herself as she Sword of Protection vibrated violently in her hands, the blade gleaming in a rainbow of color. It was a struggle just to hold on; it felt like she was trying contain a raging thunderstorm in her hands. But She-Ra gritted her teeth and persevered through the blistering pain that was swelling up in her hands. The Princess of Power flipped her sword facing downwards and jammed it into the slot with a roar. She could see the energy traveling through the cables into the portal ring, lights flashing as the generator filled, arcs of electricity jumping around the outer edges, and –

** _Phbbbt!_ **

She-Ra went beady-eyed for a moment, looking up at the still empty portal generator that had made a noise that sounded an awful lot like –

“_Did I just hear a…fart noise?_” said Glimmer disgustedly over Scorpia and Bow’s bellowing laughter.

“_Entrapta, please tell you didn’t just waste all our time by building a fart machine?_” said Catra exasperatedly.

“Hmm, that wasn’t supposed to happen,” Entrapta hummed thoughtfully, looking over the console. “Oooh, I see what I did wrong…. I forgot to turn it on.”

“_ENTRAPTA!_” the princesses yelled simultaneously in annoyance.

“Sorry, sorry,” Entrapta apologized, giggling. “Turning it on…now!”

She flipped the switch – and all hell broke loose.

She-Ra was blinded by a sudden explosion of white light radiating from the portal ring before she was blown off her feet by incredible gale force winds. The only reason she didn’t go flying off was because she was still holding on to the Sword of Protection, which was firmly lodged in the electronic pedestal. She-Ra was still blinded, but she could hear Entrapta’s panicked screams over the howling winds, likely clinging to the control panel.

“Entrapta, what’s going on?” She-Ra screamed.

“I believe I have miscalculated!” Entrapta shouted in response. “I believed that the new system would be enough to contain the incoming energy flow , but I severely underestimated the output of the Runestone’s combined power when focused into a singular point!”

“What does that mean?” She-Ra yelled.

“It means you better hold on to your butt!” Entrapta cried.

“**_ENTRAPTA!_**” She-Ra roared.

The light and wind grew more powerful until, suddenly, the whole world went black –

* * *

Deep in the halls of Castle Grayskull, the Sorceress sat upon her tall and lonely throne, resting for when the next siege against her fortress would inevitably occur, whether it be from Skeletor, King Hiss, or Hordak. The winged mage sighed peacefully in her sleep…until she suddenly shot up in her seat, back straight, a loud gasp escaping her throat as her vision suddenly became clouded with flashes of images:

She saw a tear opening in the skies over Eternia. She saw a new, yet familiar world taking its place among the stars. She saw various faces of strange people – a girl that sparkled, a dark-skinned archer, a large scorpion, a girl in an iron mask, and a…no, that can’t be…a Thunderian? She saw Adam standing in front of a mirror, but the glass showed not himself, but a girl with the same eyes. She saw Skeletor, King Hiss, and Hordak standing side-by-side, the shadows of many others looming behind them. She saw a person garbed in a tattered red robe, his exposed arms withered and covered in bandages, a horrible chill running down the Sorceress’s spine. And finally, she saw He-Man’s Sword of Power joined with another gleaming sword with a golden hilt and a large crystal embedded –

The Sorceress threw herself back in her seat, hitting her head against her throne, as she was lurched from her visions. The winged woman clutched her chest, gasping for breath, sweat trickling down her brow.

“It cannot be…,” she gasped.

* * *

Adam sat on the edge of the garden fountain; his mood visibly deflated since this morning when he was riding another high from kicking Skeletor’s butt. He stared at the pink swaddling blanket that his parents had given him as if it was supposed to help him feel better. But what exactly was he supposed to feel better about? Missing a sister he never even knew? How could you miss something you didn’t even know existed until half-an-hour ago? No, he didn’t feel sad or angry like his parents no doubt were because Adam didn’t get the chance to meet her. Instead he felt…cheated. Like he had been robbed of something precious and didn’t know about it. Adam had Teela growing up, so it wasn’t like he was lonely or found wanting, but now he couldn’t get it out of his head how different his life might have turned out it that…whatever it was hadn’t stolen his twin.

And speaking of Teela….

“There you are,” Adam jumped, having not realized his oldest friend had walked up to him while he was buried in thought. Teela took one look at the blanket and smirked. “Is that yours? It suits you. He-Man would look very…striking in pink.”

“Har, har,” said Adam, rolling his eyes. “For your information, this used to belong to my sister.”

“Yeah, right,” Teela scoffed. “You don’t have a sister.”

“I do!” Adam shouted, surprising even himself by how loud he was. “Or at least…I used to. I have – or had – a twin sister. She was taken the day we were born…. Mother and Father just told me out of nowhere.”

“Oh…,” Teela spoke softly, automatically looking regretful. She took a seat beside Adam, touching his shoulder gently. “I’m sorry about that…. Are you okay?”

“Why wouldn’t I be?” asked Adam. “I mean, I didn’t even know I had a sister until today, so it’s not like I missed her.”

“…But you wish you did, don’t you?” said Teela.

“I don’t know!” Adam groaned, jumping to his feet with his face in his hands. “I mean, yeah, now that I think about it, a part of me does want to know more about her now. Is she still alive? What kind of person is she? Would we get along? Would we end up fighting like regular siblings? I never even thought about these things until now. Does that make any sense to you?”

“Actually, it does,” said Teela, standing up and rubbing his back supportively. “I didn’t know about Uncle Fisto until we met him during that whole thing with Webstor and the Snake Men. After that, I kept thinking about what it would have been to grow up knowing my uncle. All the stories he could have told me, helping me with my training, maybe even play a couple pranks on my father. It’s natural to wonder what life could have been like if things had been different. Like, what if father and Uncle Fisto had never fought…or if I had the chance to meet my mother.”

“Your mother?” Adam tensed slightly.

“Father never talks about her, so I don’t usually bring it up,” said Teela, staring off into space. “Though sometimes I do think about her. I just wish father would tell me who she was, just so I could learn a little bit about her.”

Oof, that’s a real punch to the gut, Adam thought. He was almost tempted to tell her just so she would stop looking so crestfallen, but he swore an oath to the Sorceress –

“**_Adam…Adam…please hear me…._**”

And speak of the bird woman, Adam thought.

“Sorceress?” Adam shouted to the sky, surprising Teela that she jumped away slightly.

“**_Adam, come quickly, you must return to Castle Grayskull,_**” the Sorceress called. “**_I sense a great upheaval in the balance of the universe._**”

“What kind of ‘upheaval’?” said Adam.

“Was that the Sorceress?” Teela asked, immediately falling into warrior woman mode. “Is Skeletor attacking Castle Grayskull again?”

Before Adam had the chance to answer, an Eternia-shattering _BOOM _roared above their heads, drawing their attention to the sky. Just beyond one of Eternia’s two natural moons, though difficult to see from a distance, appeared to be a sort of tear in the very sky itself. At first, it didn’t seem like much, until the tear spread outwards in every direction, creating a swirling vortex of pinkish-purple energy. Adam was faintly aware of the distance shouts of the palace guards and servants, understandably frightened by the fact that there was a massive rift in the very heavens above their world, but Adam was too focused on the vortex to pay attention.

Once the vortex seemingly stopped spreading…something slowly began to emerge from within. It was large – easily bigger than Eternia’s moon – that looked like a ball of swirling pastel colors with many smaller, colorful balls emerging from the vortex alongside it.

“What…is that?” Teela said slowly, sounding genuinely worried.

“I think it’s…a planet…,” Adam answered, bewildered at what he was witnessing.

* * *

But it wasn’t only the people of Eternos who were witnessing this phenomenon. Skeletor was standing in the mouth of Snake Mountain, lost in deep thought, when the thunderous _BOOM _drew his attention toward the sky past the Dark Hemisphere’s dark moon. His jaw almost came unhinged as he witnessed the vortex opening above Eternia and the new world slowly sliding into existence.

“What in the name of Eternia is that?” Skeletor gaped.

* * *

Hidden far below in the depths of Subternia, the army of the Snake Men gathered near the rivers of magna that flowed through the caverns, their cacophony of hisses and shrieks bouncing off the walls. A group of Caligar warriors they had captured earlier that day were bound and forced to their knees. The Snake Men eager to sink their fangs into their skin, but they must wait. King Hiss always feasted first and he always savored his meal. The lord of the Snake Man was halfway through swallowing the beefiest Caligar of the bunch alive when suddenly –

“King Hiss! King Hiss!” Kobra Khan screeched, shoving his way through the ranks. The generals snarled, wanting more than nothing than to trash the little serpent if he wasn’t favored by their leader. “King Hiss, you must come quickly! The surface! Something is happening!”

The Snake Men turned their attention to their master, waiting patiently as he slurped the Caligar’s tail before facing his servant. King Hiss narrowed his burning-red eyes suspiciously, but followed nonetheless.

* * *

From their dark sanctuary on the outskirts of the Dark Hemisphere, Evil-Lyn hummed thoughtfully as she gazed upon the imagine that formed within her scepter. Like the rest of Eternia, she witnessed the opening of the vortex and the planet that spilled forth into their universe. Unlike the others, however, Evil-Lyn immediately recognized the vortex and where it had opened from.

“It would appear that someone has found a way to escape Despondos from the other side,” said Evil-Lyn. “And an entire world, no less. Whoever did this could become a grave danger to us all. How do you wish to proceed, Lord Hordak?”

The mighty Hordak – frighteningly larger and more powerful than the version that plagued Etheria – leaned forward in his throne, his hands folded under his chin, humming in thought as he gazed upon the new world.

* * *

When the last of the new planet’s satellites filtered into their universe, the swirling vortex sowed itself together and vanished without a trace or sound, leaving only an unblemished yellowish-red afternoon sky. Adam and Teela remained rooted in their spots, staring open-mouthed at the new world floating innocently from a great distance, but still visible from the surface of Eternia.

“Sooo…are we supposed to do something, or…,” Teela said slowly, turning to Adam for answers.

“What do you expect us to do about _that_?” asked Adam, gesturing to the new planet.

“I don’t know – turn into He-Man or something?” said Teela with uncertainty. “He-Man can do something about weird planets just popping up out of nowhere, right?”

“What’re you basing that off of?” said Adam dumbfoundedly. “He-Man may be the most powerful man in the universe, but even he has his limits.”

“Then what are we supposed to – wait, what’s that’s?” Teela said suddenly, shifting her attention back on the planet.

Adam looked up as well and noticed for the first time that ten bright flashes of light suddenly appeared in the surface of the new world, each of them a different color ranging from pure-white and pitch-black, to shimming-purple and deep-red. The lights flickered on different parts of the planet until they streaked across the Eternian sky like colorful shooting stars. Several of them disappeared over the horizon – the pure-white one looked like it was flying towards the Dark Hemisphere – the light colored in deep-red, however, seemed to be getting bigger to Adam…. And it took him a few seconds to realize that the reason was because it was flying straight towards them!

“Move!” Teela screamed, gathering her wits faster and pulling Adam away by the arm.

Adam nearly stumbled from the sudden jolt, but quickly caught himself and dashed toward the palace entrance side-by-side with Teela only seconds before the flashing light crashed into the fountain, smashing the pool and throwing them forward from the shockwave. They flipped around on their elbows, their breaths coming out in short, panicked gasps, looking over the damage the shooting star had caused. The palace garden was effectively destroyed (“Mother is going to be so upset about this,” Adam commented) by the smoking crated that took up the space where the fountain used to be. Broken pipes jutted out of the ground, spraying mounds of mud, dead flowers, and stone chunks from the broken fountain.

Adam and Teela cautiously rose to their feet, maintaining visual on the smoke should something come out of it, like things usually did, when they heard the palace doors slam behind them. Adam chanced a look back and saw Man-At-Arms and the other Masters running to them.

“Prince Adam! Teela! Are you all right?” said Man-At-Arms with concern. “You’re not hurt, are you?”

“We’re fine, father,” Teela answered, standing up straight like her training dictated when referring to a commanding officer. “We were able to escape the blast radius before it hit.”

“What in the world is going on today?” said Stratos, shaking his head. “First a planet appears from the heavens, and now meteors smashing into the palace?”

“You think this is Skeletor’s handiwork?” asked Mekaneck.

“Not even Skeletor can summon entire worlds,” said Man-At-Arms. “There’s something else going on here.”

“Hey, guys, over here!” Adam suddenly shouted.

The Eternian prince had approached the crater without notice while they were caught in their discussion. Adam appeared to be leaning over the edge of the hole, looking at something below as the smoke dissipated, and then suddenly jumped inside.

“Adam, be careful!” Man-At-Arms warned.

“There’s someone down here!” Adam called back. “It’s a girl!”

Man-At-Arms and the other Masters exchanged looks before they slowly made their approach to the edge of the crater, drawing their weapons just in case. They peered down and saw that there was, in fact, someone sprawled out facedown at the bottom of the hole as Adam kneeled beside their body. The prince hesitantly reached his hand out to the person, but paused momentarily and looked up at Man-At Arms as if asking for permission. When the old warrior gave him the silent nod, Adam grasped the stranger by the shoulder and carefully flipped them around onto their back.

He stared into the face of the cat-like girl as her fuzzy head lolled to the side, her claws dangling limply across her chest, and the bejeweled headgear hanged crooked off her forehead. Adam tried waking the cat girl by slapping her cheeks gently, but she didn’t even so much as flinch; she was definitely unconscious.

“Is that a Qadian?” asked Mekaneck surprisingly.

“She looks different than the ones we’ve seen in King Carnivus’s village,” Teela noted.

“She’s hurt!” Adam said urgently, taking notice of the severe cuts and bruises coating the cat girl’s body. “She needs help!”

“Hmm, you’re right,” said Man-At-Arms after a moment of thought. He turned to the Masters and ordered, “Take her to one of the guest rooms and alert the palace medic that she needs immediate attention. But don’t let your guard down. We don’t know who she is or where she came from. I want guards stationed outside her doors at all times. We’ll question her once she’s awake.”

Everyone immediately went to work: Ram Man jumped into the hole to collect the strange cat girl while Stratos flew off in search of the doctor. Man-At-Arms watched the cat girl go with scrutiny, his mind no doubt already thinking of several dozen ways why this stranger could be a threat and many different ways on how to neutralize her. Adam, meanwhile, stayed in the ruined gardens for a moment to think.

The sorceress said there was a ‘great upheaval’…. Well, a new world and a cat girl crash landing in the garden certainly qualifies.

* * *

Meanwhile, the Dark Hemisphere was greeted with its own surprise just moments ago.

Shortly after the new planet had appeared, Skeletor had observed the ten flashes of light flying across the stars, watching as the pure-white beacon suddenly curved its way into toward him and smashed into the base of Snake Mountain, creating a very impressive hole by Skeletor’s standards. By the time he had made his way to the crash site, Skeletor found his Evil Warrior’s gathered around the crater, looking unsure about how to proceed. Figures these nimrods can’t even perform a simple task on their own, Skeletor thought in annoyance.

It was Tri-Klops who noticed his arrival and called out, “Lord Skeletor, come quick! There’s someone down there! It looks like a girl!”

Now that peeked Skeletor’s curiosity. A single girl was responsible for making a large dent in his fortress? This he had to see….

As the skull-faced warlord approached the edge of the crater, he peered down and saw that there was indeed a young girl lying on her back at the bottom, her head lolled to the side and her golden-blonde hair fanned out underneath her. The first thing he notice was that the girl had a few scars – she had clearly seen her fair share of battles – and the fact that she only had one glove covering her arm meant that the damage underneath must be too extensive to want to be seen. The second thing she noticed was her hand gripped tightly around the handle of a very large sword like it was her lifeline. The sword itself was magnificent, Skeletor would admit, though a bit too flashy for his tastes. But despite appearances, Skeletor could sense a vast wealth of magical power swelling inside this girl’s body – not greater than his own, but definitely more powerful than Evil-Lyn had been.

Skeletor chuckled darkly.

“Well…,” he said menacingly, “this is an interesting development.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Though this story draws on the greater MOTU mythos, I will mostly be treating Adam's side of the story as a continuation of the He-Man 200X show as the villains are much more powerful and dangerous in that version and would be a true test for Adora, who has rarely fought anyone who could match her, but now finds herself on a world filled with super strong warriors.
> 
> And though season 3 of She-Ra had a terrible ending (Someone hug that cat and kill the shadow bitch!), I am thankful for it bringing up the concept that Hordak is a clone. This gives me a way of explaining why there is another Hordak in a way that makes sense.


	3. Stars Crossed, Part 2

Eternos was on Master-Level high alert, which came as no surprise considering a new planetoid had literally appeared out of nowhere above their heads and the substantial damage done to the royal garden. Security around the palace had been increased tenfold with double patrol to the corridors outside the room where their unexpected “guest” was still sleeping. Man-At-Arms had gone up to the highest tower in Eternos with Mekaneck – the telescopic hero stretched his namesake as far as physically possible toward the sky, looking up the new planet. While Mekaneck scanned images of the new world with his digital visor, Man-At-Arms downloaded the screenshots onto a data pad he had hooked up to his friend’s namesake. Man-At-Arms hummed thoughtfully.

“All right, Mekaneck, try scanning the area thirty degrees north by twenty-eight degrees west,” Man-At-Arms ordered.

“C’mon, Man-At-Arms, haven't you got enough already?” Mekaneck complained. “My neck is seriously starting to cramp up.”

“Sorry, my friend, but we can’t afford the risk of being caught unprepared,” said Man-At-Arms firmly. “We don’t know anything about this new world, and we have no idea if its inhabitants are hostile or why they appeared in the first place. We need to take precautionary measures.”

“Don’t you think you are being a little paranoid, Duncan?” Man-At-Arms turned as King Randor appeared through the doorway, stopping by his old friend. “We shouldn’t be so quick to dismiss the people of this new world without getting to know them first. For all we know, they could be a peace-loving race.”

“Forgive me, your majesty, but it is my job to be paranoid,” said Man-At-Arms seriously, though his mustache quirked up slightly. “And since that strange cat girl crash-landed into the queen’s garden following the appearance of this new planet, I think I am right to be cautious. Speaking of our guest, have you had a chance to speak to the Qadians about her?”

“I just finished speaking with Chief Carnivus over the radio channels,” said Randor, frowning slightly. “There is no one from Felis Qadi that matches her description, though Carnivus seemed to think that she might be from another tribe not native to Etheria. I admit I was little surprised to know that there are cat folk from other worlds, but I didn’t say anything. He’s going to seek council from the elders and get back to me once he has something to tell.”

“Hmm, it’s not much to go on, but it’s a start,” said Man-At-Arms worriedly.

“And have you learned anything about that strange planet that had joined our solar system,” asked Randor, tilting his head back at the pastel world.

“Telescopic scans show that the planet is definitely inhabited by large numbers of different species ranging from humans to lizards to…goat people,” said Man-At-Arms as he tapped away at the data pad, showing his king the images they had taken thus far. “And atmospheric readings show that the planet is breathable with only a slightly higher count of CO2 stemming from the large industrial zone on the eastern side of the planet.” He added, presenting a picture of the Fright Zone.

“Anything worth noting?” said Randor inquisitively.

“Though the majority of the planet isn’t as technologically advance outside of the industrial zone,” Man-At-Arms continued, “they do appear to have organized themselves into stable cultures. There is a colony of tree folk,” He brought up a picture of Plumeria, “seafaring natives” an imagine of Sailneas, “mystics,” an image of Mystacor, “established monarchy,” an image of Bright Moon, “and even civilizations thriving in extreme conditions like the desert and a snow-covered mountain,” back-to-back pictures of the Crimson Waste and the Kingdom of Snows. “As far as I can tell, the only real difference between this planet and Eternia is that it’s more…colorful.”

“If they already have established nations, that must mean there are people in charge of them,” said Randor. “Perhaps we should try to extent a hand of friendship to our new neighbors, once we figure out a way to reach them.”

“I’ve started working on designs for an interplanetary ship with Roboto,” said Man-At-Arm. “It will take a while. We were hoping to get some input from Queen Marlena since she has experience on the subject.”

“I will be sure to let her know,” said Randor with a soft grin. “For now, let’s turn our attention to the strange lights that appeared earlier. Have you learned anything new from our feline friend?”

“She was still unconscious when Ram Man dropped off in the guest rooms on the east wing,” said Man-At-Arms. “Don’t worry, I have guards posted outside to make sure that she doesn’t try to run away. I even asked Adam and Teela to watch over her. If anything happens, I’m sure they’ll let us know.”

“Trusting Adam to watch a girl – a girl with claws, no less?” said Randor, looking uncertain. “Somehow, that does not put me at ease.”

* * *

The Prince of Eternia sat backwards in his chair, resting his chin on his arms, occupying himself between watching Teela pace a groove in the floor and keeping an eye on the cat girl knocked out on the guest bed. Even though he had been the one to volunteer to watch the newcomer, he didn’t think it would take this long for her to wake up. Already it’s been four hours since she nearly flattened them in the gardens and the most the new girl had done thus far was turn sideways when her body touched the comfortable mattress and purred when the duvet was thrown on top. Adam had to admit that it was a little adorable.

Teela didn’t share the sentiment. The warrior woman regarded the cat girl with suspicion and immediately volunteered to join Adam in watching her, even though the prince argued that there were at least twenty guards outside if he needed any help. But Teela was adamant in staying, even giving Adam her signature glare that said it was not up for debate. She probably didn’t trust him to be alone with another woman, Adam thought, after the incident where Evil-Lyn once again betrayed Skeletor, leaving her critically injured, and Adam nursed her back to health. Though in all fairness, Evil-Lyn _did_ betray them in order to free Hordak, so….

Adam perked his head up from his thoughts when Teela threw up her arms with an exaggerated groan.

“How long is she going to keep sleeping?” said Teela impatiently.

“Well, she did hit the ground at terminal velocity,” Adam pointed out. “I think it’s a miracle that she’s even alive.”

“Yeah, I suppose you’re right,” said Teela begrudgingly, crossing her arms and frowning. “But we really should wake her up and question her. For all we know, she could be one of Hordak’s henchmen and we just invited her into the heart of the kingdom.”

“Then do you have any ideas on how to get her up?” Adam challenged.

Teela tapped her chin and hummed thoughtfully, her eyes glancing back and forth across the room. After a moment of pause, she suddenly pointed to the opposite side of the room and shouted so loudly that it made Adam jump in his seat, “Oh my god, is that a mouse?”

“_WHERE?!”_ Catra shot straight up in bed with her claws extended, her fangs bared, and her hair standing on end like a hissing cat. When she didn’t immediately see her desired prey, and the room echoed with restrained laughter, Catra visible calmed, though looked rather grumpy.

“Oh ha-ha, very funny, Ado – “ When she turned towards the source of laughter, she found a blonde-haired, blue-eyed human, just the wrong gender. “…You’re not Adora. Kinda look like her, just without the extra goodies. Still good-looking, though.”

“Thanks?” said Adam uncertainly.

“All right, that’s enough out of you,” Teela suddenly sounded forceful, stepping between Catra and Adam with her hands on her hips and a heated glare, which Catra only smirked at; she had received far worse looks growing up in the Fright Zone. “We have some questions for you. Who are you? Where did you come from? Who sent you? What is your intention in our kingdom? Answer!”

“Whoa, whoa, cool your jets, Teela, you’re going a mile a minute,” said Adam, jumping out of his seat and putting a hand on her shoulder. “Give her a chance to speak.”

“Nah, I’m used to it – Adora is way worse than her,” said Catra, waving it off.

“Still, we shouldn’t be rude, especially after she just woke up,” said Adam kindly, stepping closer to the bed. “Maybe we should start by introducing ourselves first. I’m Adam, Prince of Eternia. And this is Teela, the captain of the guard,” he gestured to the stalwart woman.

“Eternia…where does that sound familiar,” Catra mumbled to herself.

“Well, are you going to tell us who _you _are,” said Teela severely.

“Aw, someone sounds eager,” said Catra teasingly. “You are kinda cute in a mannish sort of way, but I’m already taken.” She cackled slightly when Teela looked ready to jump the Magicat, only to be held back by Adam. “But if it makes you feel better…. My name’s C'yra of D'riluth III, Princess of the Kingdom of Halfmoon. But I prefer to be called Catra.”

“Well, it’s – nice to meet you – Princess Catra,” Adam grunted while pushing Teela back. “Always nice – to meet – other royalty – Teela, will you cut it out already?”

“Funny how you claim to be a princess when I’ve never even heard of the Kingdom of Halfmoon,” Teela regarded her suspiciously. “Adam, she’s clearly lying. She just made up some dragon dung about a pretend kingdom because you told her you’re a prince. She probably thought we’d let her off easy for that.”

“Teela, let’s just hear her out,” Adam said patiently. “I’m sure there’s some explanation.”

“Eh, I don’t blame you guys for never hearing about Halfmoon,” said Catra lightly, leaning up against the headboard with her hands folded behind her head. “Halfmoon’s been hiding under the Talon Mountains for close to twenty years after the Horde raided our first kingdom. A lot of people forgot about them.”

“The Horde raided your kingdom?” asked Adam, now also looking suspiciously at Catra. “You mean like Hordak?”

“You know any other pasty-faced, vampire-looking jerk?” Catra retorted.

“And where _is _the Talon Mountains, exactly?” Teela questioned.

“Uh, south of Thaymor, duh,” said Catra, like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

“And…Thaymor is…?” Adam said slowly, encouraging her to continue.

“The forest village east of Bright Moon,” said Catra, rolling her eyes in annoyance. Adam and Teela only stared unblinkingly at her like she had grown a second head, so Catra continued. “You know, Bright Moon, that place that looks like a rainbow threw up on it.” More staring. “The seat of power of the Princess Alliance.” And again, just more staring. “Ruled by Queen Sparkles – er, I mean, Glimmer.” Seriously, do these people even blink? “It has a giant floating rock in the front yard!”

“I say we take her to my father,” Teela muttered quietly to Adam; Catra’s ear perked up without their notice. “She’s just speaking a lot of gibberish at this point. Obviously, she’s trying to hide something. I don’t trust her.”

“You don’t trust anybody,” Adam retorted. “And I don’t think she’s making anything she says up; she looked like really believes those places are real…. Hold on, let me try something.”

Catra had naturally overheard everything because of her Magicat senses and her first instinct was to claw their faces and make a break for freedom. But she was at a major disadvantage: she had no idea where she was being held, what kind of powers her captors had, if any, and if this boy-Adora was a prince like he said, then there was bound to be a lot of guards stationed outside the door. For now, the best she could do was wait for an opportunity to present itself. So the Magicat princess sat up quietly in her comfortable bed (a lot firmer than the ones in Bright Moon, Catra was pleased to know) and watched Adam take a seat on the edge casually, like he wasn’t afraid that Catra might suddenly lash out and slice his face open. The guy is more like Adora than beyond their looks, Catra thought. Trusting a complete stranger without even knowing them – Horde Catra would’ve taken this guy prisoner without hesitation, but Princess Catra waited to hear what he had to say.

“Hey, Catra, can I ask you a question?” Adam said slowly.

“You already did,” said Catra, smirking to herself while Teela rolled her eyes at the tired old joke. “But I’ll give you another one.”

“Thanks,” Adam chuckled pleasantly. Crap, he even laughed like Adora, Catra thought. “I was just wondering…what world do you think you’re on right now?”

“…Etheria…why?” Catra said slowly.

She didn’t like the way the two of them shared concerned looks. When Adam turned back to Catra, he touched her arm gently and said, “Catra…the world we live on is Eternia. No one has ever heard of Etheria, or Bright Moon, or Halfmoon, or any of the other places you mentioned.”

“What are you talking about?” Catra gaped at them. “How can you – you’re trying to mess with me, right? I’ve lived on Etheria my entire life, so I know it’s real.”

“Maybe…,” Adam said, touching his chin in thought. He suddenly jumped to his feet and offered his hand to her. “Here, let me show you something.”

Catra looked at his hand, scrutinizing it, then turned her attention to his face. She was pretty good at reading people, so she could tell that he didn’t have any bad intentions. Then again, she might be blinded by the fact that Adam seemed so similar to Adora in both looks and personality that it could be clouding her better judgment. But, after a few seconds of thinking over her options, Catra threw the comforter off her body and pulled herself out of bed, disregarding Adam’s assistance. Whether he was offended or not, he didn’t let it show; Teela certainly looked irritated at her.

The Prince of Eternia made a gesture for Catra to follow him, crossed the unreasonably large bed chamber (“Seriously, are all royals overcompensating for something?” Catra mumbled quietly.) to the row of windows on the other side. Adam pushed the panes open and leaned over the sill, waving Catra to do the same. Though slightly suspicious, the Magicat princess joined him and together they looked outside.

Catra was taken back by how different the world suddenly looked that she rubbed eyes to make sure she was seeing things clearly. She had traveled to every corner of Etheria during her time with the Horde and on her own journey of self-discovery, but she quickly realized that she couldn’t recognize any of the surrounding landmarks. There was a wide stretch of forest surrounding the palace, but looked nothing like the Whispering Woods or the trees of Plumeria, a short range of jagged mountains jutted just over the horizon, and even the colors themselves seemed strangely muted, even compared to the dark and dreary backdrop of the Fright Zone. Catra turned her focus to the sky, expecting to see at least one of Etheria’s multiple moons. She found the moon…and an entire planet within visible range just beyond it. It was like a giant marble of pastel colors so bright they made Catra want to vomit; half a dozen small balls floated around its orbit. The Magicat princess could tell that her jaw was hanging open – she instinctively knew what she was looking at, even if her brain was arguing how impossible it was.

“That planet just appeared over Eternia a few hours ago,” Adam said carefully, gauging Catra’s reaction. “And then you crashed into the palace a couple minutes after…. Is that your world? Etheria?”

“….Holy crap,” Catra breathed several silent moments. “It worked…it Actually worked! Entrapta, you insane little genius!”

“Uh, wanna run that by me,” said Adam looking at her strangely. “What worked?”

“That!” Catra shouted, grabbing Adam roughly with one hand and pointing at Etheria with the other. “That worked! It worked! Entrapta’s machines actually pulled us out of Despondos! Holy crap, I can’t believe it actually worked! I honestly thought it was going to blow up all of reality like last time – GURK!”

Without warning or hesitation, Teela had crossed the room and pressed her arm around Catra’s throat, locking her into a chokehold; wasn’t as strong as She-Ra’s, but it was pretty good. The Amazonian warrior ripped Catra away from Adam, bracing the hold with her other arm, making it difficult for the Magicat to breath. Catra flew into a panic and tried clawing at Teela’s arm, but she wasn’t letting go. Thankfully, Adam lurched forward and pulled on Teela’s arm to loosen her grip before Catra blacked out.

“Whoa, whoa, Teela, what’s the matter with you?” said Adam shockingly.

“She said they came from Despondos – you heard her confess!” said Teela with a furious leer. “Adam, you know Despondos is a prison for the worst beings in the universe, and they just brought an entire planet into Eternian skies! I knew she couldn’t be trusted!”

“Hey…that’s not my fault…,” Catra choked out. “Etheria was already…in Despondos…hundreds of years before…I was even born. Before any of us…were born. It’s not our fault…some crazy lady…threw the whole planet in…another dimension. We just wanted…to get out….”

“You hear that, Teela, it’s not their fault,” Adam said kindly. “They’re just people who were dealt a bad hand and wanted to be free. They’re not the bad guys.”

“Well, technically speaking, I was the leader of an evil military trying to destroy Etheria because of my inferiority complex and my need for validation,” Catra confessed. “And I did try to destroy all of reality in a suicide attempt after I had a mental breakdown because of my abandonment issues and feeling betrayed by everyone I thought was my friend. I did a lot of evil things in three short years.”

“You’re not really helping yourself,” Adam said dryly.

“My therapist says I have a tendency to be self-destructive,” Catra answered casually. “Then again, my therapist _is _Perfuma and she's not exactly...all there.”

“Do you need any more proof than this?” Teela said to Adam. “We should throw her in the confinement cells and warn my father.”

“Okay, let’s cool our heads before we do something rash – “ Adam started when a loud voice echoed violently in his head.

“**_Adam! Adam! You must hurry!_**”

Oh crap, the Sorceress. In all the excitement, Adam had forgotten that he had been summoned.

“**_Adam, you must come to Castle Grayskull at once! It is of the utmost urgency!_**”

“All right, I’m on my way!” Adam shouted, which he now realized he had done out loud and drew questionable stares from Teela and Catra. “Er…I mean, I must be on my way…to that…thing. You know, Teela, with our feathered friend at the place.”

“Oh, right, yes, of course,” said Teela, catching on. “You should hurry. It might be important.”

“I’ll be back later,” Adam declared, running toward the door. “Don’t do anything with her while I’m gone!”

The young prince threw open the door, the guards outside yelping in surprise, and disappeared around the corner as the entrance slammed shut behind him. Now it was just her alone with the cat girl, which made Teela’s brow furrow in distaste.

“All right, you, let’s get a few things straight – “

When she looked down in her arms, Teela realized three important things. First, she was choking one of the pillows from the bed. Second, said cat girl was nowhere to be see in the room. And third, the windows were still open and there were some noticeable claw marks on the sill. Teela’s shoulders slumped as she ran a hand down her face.

“Father is going to kill me,” Teela moaned.

* * *

Trap Jaw mumbled bitterly under his breath, his flesh and blood hand delicately balancing the serving tray. Why was he the one bringing food to the new girl? And for that matter, why was she getting special treatment when she blew a hole in the base of the mountain? If _he _had done that, Skeletor would have flay him to within an inch of his life.

But Skeletor had taken a shine to the new girl from the first moment he saw her, even gave her one of the better bedchambers in Snake mountain: plenty of legroom with a decent windowed view of the Dark Hemisphere. The total opposite of the practical closets most of the Evil Warriors had to live with. He even made Trap Jaw bring her food for when she woke up, consisting of honey fruit, a glass of nectar juice, and beef stew with real beef, not that processed stuff the rest of them had to choke on. If Trap Jaw wasn’t afraid of getting caught, he would have been tempted to eat it all himself.

The patchwork villain leaned forward to squeezing his bulky body into the bedchamber and found the new girl still asleep on the rock slab that served as a bed, tucked underneath one of the only blankets in the entire Dark Hemisphere. The girl’s posture was as stiff as a board, like she practiced standing at attention in her sleep. Weirdo.

He carefully slid the tray on the stone bedside table when Trap Jaw noticed the girl’s weapon was leaning against it, glittering in the light of the magma falls outside the holes in the wall that served as the room’s windows. Checking over his shoulder to see that he wasn’t being watched, Trap Jaw picked up the sword with his fleshy hand and turned it over, inspecting the blade from all sides.

“I don’t see what’s so special,” Trap Jaw grumbled. “Skeletor's just letting any old broad come in a take up all the good stuff. I bet he’s just trying to make Evil-Lyn jealous….”

But while Trap Jaw kept complaining, the new girl’s face scrunched up as consciousness started to come back.

The first thing Adora realized is that she was lying on some type of flat surface that reminded her of her old bunk in the Fright Zone – so rigidly firm it kept her back perfectly straight, just the way she liked it. Her eyes fluttered open slowly, blinking several times until her vision came into focus. She stared up at an unfamiliar ceiling made of stone like a cavern with a few flickering shafts of orangish-yellow light on the walls. She felt a strange warmth radiating nearby that reminded Adora of the Fright Zone’s steam pipes that she and Catra used to huddle up against during the cold nights. Adora let out an audible groan as she tried to wake the rest of her body when she noticed the subtle movement in her peripherals.

Adora craned her head to the side and was suddenly locking eyes with Trap Jaw, who had frozen up like a deer in the headlights. In that moment, Adora’s sleep addled mind realized two things: A scary-looking patchwork cyborg-creature was standing over her bedside, and said cyborg-creature was holding the Sword of Protection. Put these two together and Adora’s response was clear:

She reached over to the side table, snatched up the serving tray, spilling everything on the floor, (“Hey!” Trap Jaw complained), and smacked the cyborg across the face. It didn’t really hurt that much since his namesake was made of steel and only made him spin sideways. But what _did _hurt was the blonde girl leaping out of bed, grabbing him roughly by the shoulders, and driving her knee into his groin. Trap Jaw’s vocal cords struck a few octaves higher than normal as he lurched forward onto his knees, curling in on himself. Sure, it might have been a low blow, Adora admitted, but the guy seriously freaked her out! On the bright side, he did drop the Sword of Protection.

She stooped down to pick it up when she heard a set of rushed footsteps coming from the corridors, no doubt attracted by the noise, and two more strangers appeared through the entryway. One of them was human wearing a strange headgear with only one eye and the other looked like how Catra once described Grizzlor, only more gorilla-like.

“What’s going on here?” Tri-klops yelled, looking around wildly. His eye first fell on Trap Jaw, hunched over on the floor, them roamed over to Adora, standing defensively with her sword. “Hey, what do you think you’re doing?”

“Stay back, creeps!” Adora shouted.

“Creeps?” Beast Man roared, insulted. “Who’re you calling creeps, you little gnat!”

Tri-Klops opened his mouth to stop him, but Beast Man had already jumped across the room with his claws forward. He was nowhere close to matching Catra’s speed, so Adora was easily able to roll out of the way, letting Beast Man sink his claws into the floor. The blonde warrior immediately jumped back up and threw her strongest haymaker across the monster man’s face, who surprisingly took the blow with little more than a head turn. Beast Man snarled angrily and backhanded Adora, throwing her into Tri-Klops’ arms. The Evil Warrior wrapped Adora into a bearhug, forcing her arms to her sides as Beast Man approached them, holding up his nails threateningly. Adora struggled against Tri-Klops’ hold, surprised by how strong he was – hardly anyone on Etheria could match her in strength – so when she figured she couldn’t break free with force, she raised her foot and stomped it down hard on Tri-Klops’. As expected, the Evil Warrior cried out and started hopping down on one foot, unknowingly letting go of Adora. The Princess of Power spun around, grabbed Tri-Klops by the front of his vest, and hip tossed him over her shoulder into Beast Man, dropping them both to the floor.

But they both picked themselves up quickly; Adora’s efforts seemed useless in her current state. She needed She-Ra.

“For the honor of – “

Just as she raised the Sword of Protection above her head, a metal claw clamped down on her weapon, holding it in place. Adora didn’t have time to process the surprise when she felt a meaty hand wrap around her free arm. She spun around wildly and stared into the face of Trap Jaw, who was extremely furious. She didn’t have a chance to fight back before Tri-Klops grabbed her sword arm and Beast Man grabbed both of her legs, lifting the blonde helplessly in the air. Adora’s attempts to fight them off were useless – they were too strong, maybe even as strong as She-Ra. Adora felt a familiar prickling of panic, her mind flashing back to Shadow Weaver, fearful tears starting to well up in her eyes –

When Evil Warriors were suddenly blasted across the room by three magical beams and Adora hit the ground on her butt, hard.

“That’s enough! You’re scaring the poor girl!”

Adora swiveled around. Someone was standing at the doorway, carrying a ram-skulled staff that was smoking from the eye sockets. He was easily taller than She-Ra and had muscles that Adora couldn’t help feeling jealous of. He also had deep-blue skin, but that wasn’t anything unusual when most of her friends were different species. Adora couldn’t see his face because his hood was so far forward it cast a deep shadow.

The three that attacked her shuffled to their feet, looking like children who had been scolded by their parent. The blue-skinned man walked over to Adora and offered his hand like a gentleman. Adora hesitated for a moment before she put her hand in his, allowing herself to be lifted to her feet.

“I do apologize for the brutish way my men treated you,” the man spoke smoothly. “They’re a bit skittish around strangers. But in their defense, you are the one who attacked them first. That was rather rude of you.”

“Hey, that guy was the one standing over me with that scary face of his!” Adora argued, pointing an accusing finger at Trap Jaw, who looked mighty insulted.

“Trap Jaw was just bringing you lunch,” said the man leisurely. “You’ve been out for almost four hours. We thought that you might be hungry when you woke up.”

“…Oh,” Adora said meekly, now feeling deeply ashamed. “Uh…sorry about that. I…um, I just thought – “

“No need to explain yourself – you’re not the first to make wrong assumptions,” the man waved her off. “We got off on the wrong foot. Let’s start by introducing ourselves. I am…was Keldor, leader of this sorry bunch you just humiliated. You’ve already met Beast Man, Trap Jaw, and Tri-Klops.” He gestured to the three, who waved tentatively. “And you are?”

“Adora,” she answered simply while also casting a quick glance around the room. “Um…if you don’t mind me asking, where am I?”

“You are inside our home within Snake Mountain,” said Keldor, which did not seem to answer her question based on Adora’s confused look. “It is located on the Dark Hemisphere of Eternia, just beyond the Sands of Time.”

“Eternia?” Adora perked up at the name. “Like the passcode for the Crystal Palace?”

“I’m sorry, I don’t understand what you mean,” said Keldor, tilting his head slightly.

“Er, never mind,” said Adora quickly. “So…how did I get here. The last thing I remember was helping my friend Entrapta with her portal, then there was all this light and wind, and then I guess I sort of…blacked out. Next thing I knew, I was waking up to that scary guy’s face and…well, you know the rest.”

“Is my face really that scary?” Trap Jaw mumbled to Tri-Klops and Beast Man.

“The stuff of nightmares,” Tri-Klops answered without hesitation.

“This portal you speak of,” said Keldor, ignoring his underling’s mutterings. “What was the purpose of it?”

“Well…the thing is, our home world has been trapped in a pocket dimension called Despondos for a thousand years,” Adora explained, not noticing how Keldor suddenly stiffened at the dimension’s name. “My friend, Entrapta, figured out a way to pull our world out using the magic Runestones and First One’s technology. We were testing the portal when everything went sideways.”

“Hmm…I seem to be getting a clearer picture of the situation,” Keldor hummed, to Adora’s confusion. “Come over here for a moment.”

Keldor walked over to one of the holes in the wall and Adora followed. The hooded man gestured for her to peek outside, and when she did, she was horrified by what she saw.

While the Fright Zone was a smog-infested industrial center and the Crimson Waste was a scorching death trap, the world beyond this window was a complete no-man’s land. Endless stretches of barren wasteland as far as the eye could see – not a hint of green in sight – with rivers of magma slithering across the terrain like fiery serpents and craggy mountains brimming with deathly-black smoke. And she didn’t even want to think about what was making those ungodly screeches outside. The only positive that Adora could take from this nightmarish world was the inky backdrop of the night sky, which she was ecstatic to find was dotted with stars – real, glittering, honest-to-Hordak stars instead of fake ones in holograms! An ethereal full moon hanged over the land…and just beyond it was a pastel, multicolored marble.

Adora already knew what it was before Keldor even spoke up.

“It appeared over Eternia a few short hours ago,” he explained. “And then you smashed into the side of the mountain not long after. I assume that is your friend’s doing?”

“Etheria…,” Adora said breathily. “Entrapta’s machine worked…somewhat. Wait,” she quickly turned to Keldor in concern. “Did you find anyone else when I crashed? Like…a pregnant girl with purple pigtails or a cat girl with two different colored eyes.”

“No, I’m sorry, you were the only one,” Keldor said solemnly. Adora’s shoulder’s slumped in disappointment. “But…there were many streaks of light that shot from the planet similar to the one you arrived in. Perhaps your friends are simply scattered across Eternia. I’m sure they’re perfectly all right.”

“I hope so,” said Adora, frowning. “Because it’s partially my fault they’re in this mess.”

“There’s no need to blame yourself,” said Keldor, resting a supportive hand on her shoulder. “Accidents happen to the best of us. Don’t let it discourage you.” Adora’s lips quirked into a small smile and nodded. “By the way…I hope you don’t mind me asking…but are you in any way associated with the Horde.”

“No – I mean, yes – I mean…it’s a really complicated situation,” Adora sputtered, defensive at first until she calmed down and thought about it. “How did you know?”

“That mark you wear on your garb,” said Keldor, gesturing to the emblem on the back of Adora’s jacket. “I’ve seen it before. It’s the mark worn by my old teacher…Hordak.”

“You were Hordak’s student!” Adora yelled shockingly.

“Yes, I was – now, I know what you’re thinking, but let me explain!” Keldor shouted quickly, throwing up his hands defensively as Adora took a stance, pointing her sword at his chest. “I was a naïve young man when I first became Hordak’s apprentice. If you would kindly allow me to speak….”

Adora regarded the hooded man with a look of suspicion, her brow furrowed as she thought over her options. Being Hordak’s former apprentice already made him untrustworthy. Hordak might have died saving them from Horde Prime, but Adora never fully forgave him for all the terrible things he had done: building an army to conquer Etheria, taking her and Catra away from their families as babies, allying himself with Shadow Weaver, building the portal that almost broke reality, and a number of other things that couldn’t be forgiven…. But she also thought about Catra and how she managed to pull herself out of the darkness after falling so far. If she, who had been Hordak’s equal, could see the light, then shouldn’t everyone deserve a chance?

Adora waited a few more seconds before she finally lowered her sword, but she kept it by her side. It was a good thing, too, because she didn’t realize how close she had come to being blasted to pieces by the hooded man’s staff should she have made the wrong choice.

“All right, you want to explain, then explain,” Adora said severely.

“Thank you,” said Keldor calmly. “What you have to understand is that Hordak wasn’t always the villain we all know he is. In my youth, he was recognized as one of the most brilliant minds in all of Eternia – a master of both science and sorcery. As a seeker of knowledge myself, I grew to admire him and worked hard in field of scientific research and the mystic arts in hopes of receiving recognition. I never would have imagined that he would one day take me on as his disciple. He saw great potential in me and thought he could nurture it into something powerful…. I didn’t realize that he was merely using me for his own gain.”

Uh-oh, this story sounded familiar, Adora thought. Flashes of a shadowy witch came to the forefront of her mind.

“I didn’t realize that Hordak had been using his research for evil purposes,” Keldor continued. “Or if I did, I ignored it because I wanted his approval. He was the man I admired most, after all. But when Hordak raised his armies to conquer Eternia and I witnessed the destruction he had wrought, I knew I couldn’t stand idly by any longer. One day, I finally got up the nerve to speak out against my former teacher and pleaded him to stop his reign of evil, for I believed that there was still some good in him…. But Hordak would not give up his power. Realizing that my former teacher was too far gone, I cast an incantation that opened a tear between realities, banishing him to another dimension from whence he would never return. I realize now that I must have sent him to your world and unintentionally brought evil to your home.

“But Hordak did not leave without a fight. Before he was cast into the rift, he struck me with one final blow, leaving his mark permanently upon my face…or lack of, as the case may be.”

When he reached up and pulled back the hood enough to bring his face out of the darkness, Adora gasped horrifically and nearly dropped her sword. She couldn’t stop staring at the polished skull resting on his shoulders, completely clear of any flesh or follicles. His eye sockets were like a pair of bottomless pits that made Adora feel like her very soul could be sucked in – Adora turned her head sharply and looked down in shame when she realized she was staring.

“Quite the gruesome sight, isn’t it?” he spoke coolly. “Hordak took my face and christened me Skeletor. Not long after Hordak was gone and his armies fell, the leaders of Eternia banished me to the Dark Hemisphere for the part I played in Hordak’s crimes in hopes that I would perish and be forgotten.”

“But it wasn’t your fault Hordak did all those things!” Adora argued. “You’re the one who defeated him!”

“It didn’t matter to the Eternian government,” said Skeletor. “And to be honest, it might as well have been a mercy. With my appearance the way it is,” he caressed his smooth cheekbone to emphasize his point, “the people of Eternia would not be welcoming of me. They aren’t very accepting of anything that is different from them. That is why Beast Man, Trap Jaw, and Tri-Klops were banished to the Dark Hemisphere as well.” He gestured to his minions along the back wall, who once again waved meekly. “If there is one good thing that came from being Hordak’s student, it’s that his lessons have allowed me to make our stay here…somewhat manageable. But as the ages pass, our chances of survival grow smaller….”

“Is it really that bad?” Adora asked sympathetically.

“We’ve been able to get by on our own talents,” said Skeletor, “but clean water is scarce in this part of the world. The intense heat and lack of sunlight makes it impossible to grow crops without a little bit of magic. And hunting wild game always comes at the risk of being hunted ourselves. We hide away in Snake Mountain because it is the only safe area in the Dark Hemisphere. We’ve supported each other over the years, but…we’ve lost a lot of good people to this godforsaken land…a lot of good friends,” he said dramatically, tilting his skull downcast with a hand on his head.

“There’s nothing that can be done?” said Adora hopefully, her thoughts returning to the first attack on Thaymor and a twinge of sorrow coiling up in her stomach.

“Well, there is one thing…,” Skeletor began, but soon trailed off and waved it away. “No, never mind. There’s no point in mentioning it.”

‘What? What is it?” Adora shouted insistently, eager to help in any way.

“Well, there is an orb of power that contains the combined energy of the Council of Elders, once the greatest beings in all of Eternia,” Skeletor explained. “Whoever possesses the orb is granted vast magical power beyond your wildest dream. A fraction of its magic alone would be enough to turn the Dark Hemisphere into a prosperous paradise where no one would ever go hungry again. Unfortunately, it’s locked up tight within Castle Grayskull.”

“Castle Grayskull?” Adora perked up. Could it be…?

“The castle is guarded by a greedy sorceress who keeps the power of the Elders for herself,” Skeletor continued uninterrupted. “She refuses to share the power with the rest of Eternia despite knowing the other kingdoms are in dire need. I once tried asking her for help, but she was unmoved by our plight and turned me away. I made the mistake of trying to steal the power by force and was set upon by her mindless lackey, He-Man. I’ve tried for years to retrieve the power from Castle Grayskull and save this barren wasteland, but it has all proven in vein. I fear we have to resign to our fates – ”

“Maybe I can convince her to help!” Adora shouted, making Skeletor jump slightly. “I think could if I tried.”

“It’s nice that you’re optimistic, Adora,” said Skeletor. “But I don’t think the sorceress will suddenly have a chance of heart simply because you ask her.”

“Well, if she won’t listen to me, then she’ll definitely listen to She-Ra,” said Adora confidently.

“Who?” Skeletor questioned.

Adora took a step back to the middle of the room, pausing for dramatic effect – because, honestly, she loved the look on people’s faces when she did this – lifted the sword above her head and shouted, “For the Honor of Grayskull!”

Skeletor’s minions turned their heads and hissed as the chamber filled with a painfully bright light, but Skeletor, who had no eyes to begin with, stared straight ahead with his jaw grounded shut. When the light passed and She-Ra made her grand appearance, Trap Jaw and Tri-Klops stared open-mouthed in awe while Beast Man howled like an excited baboon like she knew they would. Skeletor, on the other hand, was more difficult to gauge; his lack of facial features made him impossible to read. He just kept staring at She-Ra with those cold, lifeless eye sockets that made her feel uncomfortable.

“So um…this is She-Ra,” She-Ra said timidly. That’s weird; usually she was braver in this form. “What do you think?”

“What do I think?” Skeletor repeatedly slowly. He walked up to the warrior goddess, surprisingly still a foot taller than her, and rested a hand on her shoulder; She-Ra felt an uncomfortable chill run down her spine. “I think…that you may be the answer to our prayers.”

“Really?” She-Ra asked, going bright-eyed.

“I can sense it within you,” said Skeletor, tapping the area above her heart. “Somehow, you can draw upon a small portion of the power of the Elders, which allows you to transform into this She-Ra warrior…. Maybe you could, no, you could most definitely retrieve the power from Castle Grayskull. Adora…you are the key to our salvation.”

“That’s if I can get through the sorceress guarding the castle,” said She-Ra seriously. “I hope I can just talk to her – “

“I commend you for wanting to seek a peaceful alternative, Adora,” Skeletor cut in quickly. “But the Sorceress will not give up the power so easily. She will attempt to lie and deceive you if it means keeping the power for herself. If she will not surrender the power of the Elders willingly, then I’m afraid that force may be necessary.”

“I really hope it doesn’t come to that,” said She-Ra, frowning.

“Neither do I, but we do what we must for the greater good,” said Skeletor. “But we will discuss this later while we make our journey to Castle Grayskull. For now, you should think about getting some food in you before we depart,” he suggested as She-Ra’s stomach rumbled loudly at that precise moment, much to her embarrassment. “You never got the chance to eat in all the excitement. Trap Jaw, please show our new friend the way to the storage room and make sure she gets a proper meal. She’ll need her strength for when she faces the sorceress.”

Trap Jaw grumbled under his breath but treaded out of the bedchamber reluctantly with She-Ra trailing close behind, looking a little more upbeat than when she first woke. Everyone waited until they heard the footsteps fade down the corridor before Beast Man said to Skeletor, “Wow, did you really mean all that? You’re a real nice guy, Skele – “

**_BAM! _**Tri-Klops was thankful he had the foresight to step out of the way before Skeletor blasted Beast Man into the wall.

“Of course I didn’t mean any of it, you brainless ape!” Skeletor snapped, instantly reverting to his true personality. “I made up that ridiculous sob story to convince Adora to work for us! And it worked surprisingly well. That girl is remarkably gullible. I honestly feel embarrassed for her.”

“Do you really think she can get us into Grayskull?” Tri-Klops asked as Beast Man shakily stood.

“At first, I was just looking to recruit a new minion to my Evil Warriors,” said Skeletor. “But now, I think she may be the key to our success. Did you feel the power coming off of her when she transformed into She-Ra? It’s the same as the magic that has blocked our way into Castle Grayskull on countless occasions; the power of the Elders. I don’t know how she did it, but she is somehow able to draw upon their power at will. And if that is the case, then it stands to reason that Adora should be able to enter the castle without raising its defenses. All that’s left to do is make certain that she is thoroughly convinced that the sorceress that guards Grayskull is the villain and the power will be ours!”

“And what about He-Man?” asked Tri-Klops.

“That’s the best part,” said Skeletor with a tinge of eagerness in his voice. “Adora’s transformation has allowed me to glean a useful bit of information that I did not possess before. If Adora can call upon the power of the Elders to transform into She-Ra…then who’s to say that He-Man isn’t the same.” He chuckled menacingly. “All these years, we had simply assumed that He-Man was some godly being that just showed up to thwart my schemes. But in reality, he’s just an ordinary man wearing a muscle suit.”

“And now that we know his secret, all we have to do is figure out who he really is,” said Tri-Klops confidently.

“Oh, I know exactly who he is,” said Skeletor, catching his minions by surprise. “It’s really quite simple when you think about it logically. He-Man must have direct ties to the Masters since he always shows up when they are in need. And since he had been trying to keep his identity a secret, it stands to reason that his true self would need to disappear in order to transform. Then it’s just a matter of singling out the one person who always goes missing whenever He-Man turns up. Someone who is never seen in the same place as him despite the unusual circumstances…. And when you put it all together, there is only one possible choice.”

He waved his Havoc Staff at Beast Man, who flinched until he realized he wasn’t getting blasted again.

“Prepare the griffins for departure,” Skeletor commanded. “We leave for Grayskull within the hour.”

“Does this mean…?” Tri-Klops asked, smiling eagerly.

“That’s right, men,” said Skeletor with a low chuckle. “We are back in business.”

* * *

About an hour after the summons, Adam managed to make it to Castle Grayskull quickly and quietly, thanks to Teela and Man-At-Arms distracting his father and the other Masters. He would have arrived sooner, but he had to pull Cringer out from under his bed after being frightened off by a little mouse…again.

The young prince and his “fearless friend” found their way to the empty throne room where the Sorceress sat upon the former seat of Eternia’s power, stiff-backed and staring off into space. His winged ally rarely showed any emotion beyond apathy, but Adam had learned to read the Sorceress’s feelings based on her body language. She was deep in thought and very worried; a type of worry that was reserved for unfathomable dangers that would turn Eternia on its head, like King Hiss and Hordak’s release. This was going to be a cheery conversation, Adam thought sarcastically.

“Hey, Sorceress, is everything all right over here?” he asked. “Because things are going crazy over at the palace with that new planet showing up and everything.”

“I am aware of what has happened, Prince Adam,” said the Sorceress stoically. She rose from her throne and glided down to the floor, landing beside the young prince. “That is why I have summoned you.”

“So you know what’s going on out there?” asked Adam.

“In part,” said the Sorceress. “While I do not know how it is that world has returned to this reality, I do know from whence it came and what its returns brings for both Eternia and the greater universe.”

“That sounds ominous,” Adam commented; Cringer cowered behind his leg, as usual.

“I am afraid it is a matter most grave, Prince Adam,” said the Sorceress with a severe look that made Adam want to stand in attention. “To understand the gravity of the situation, Prince Adam, you must know the events that led to this day. Do you remember the tale of King Grayskull’s final battle?”

“How could I forget?” said Adam. “Hordak was conquering Etheria and King Grayskull was the only person powerful enough to stop him. He took down Hordak’s armies, so Hordak tried using a spell to banish King Grayskull into another dimension. But King Grayskull turned the spell back on him and trapped Hordak for thousands of years.”

“But not without a great cost,” the sorceress added. “Hordak had managed to deal a fatal blow to King Grayskull before his banishment and he perished on the battlefield. He transferred his power to the Elders and his weapon, the Sword of Power, was locked away in Castle Grayskull until the day when it would be needed again. The day when you would become He-Man. What you don’t know is what came after King Grayskull’s fall.

“With Hordak banished to the realm beyond our universe and King Hiss was sealed away by Zodak and the Elders, there was a void for which a new, greater evil could rise to take their place. And many evils have risen throughout the centuries, long before Skeletor’s reign, and without a champion of good to meet them, dark days loomed over Eternia for many years. Though many had tried, none could draw the power of Grayskull from his sword, not even his own children, for his power was not needed. Many villains would rise to power, but they would always fall in the end without He-Man’s aid. But the Council of Elders, still young and inexperienced at the time, grew impatient for a champion of good to come. So rather than wait, they chose to create their own champion.

“Combining both science and sorcery, the Elders would forge a weapon of power based upon King Grayskull’s legendary sword, one that would carry on his desire to protect Eternia from the forces of darkness. A Sword of Protection. While this new weapon would not have half the strength of the Sword of Power, it would be granted new abilities to make up for its shortcomings, including the power to change shape and the ability to heal. But most importantly, the weapon could be wielded by any with Eternian blood as long as they possessed great inner strength. When the Sword of Protection was completed, they would bequeath the weapon to one of King Grayskull’s two children. King Grayskull’s son argued that the creation of the sword went against his father’s wishes, but his daughter, bold and brash as she was, readily took up the Sword of Protection and called upon the power of the Elders, transforming her into She-Ra, the Princess of Power.”

“So She-Ra is like a…girl He-Man?” Adam asked strangely. “She doesn’t run around in a loincloth, too, does she?”

“She-Ra, though only an imitation of He-Man, was a mighty warrior in her own right,” said the Sorceress, pointedly ignoring Adam’s question. “She was strong and fierce, but also noble and kindhearted, much like her father…. But she was not ready, despite the Elder’s instance. She did not fully understand her own abilities, and thus perished in her first battle.”

“Oh man…,” Adam murmured. “That’s terrible.”

“Indeed – King Grayskull son was stricken with grief, having already lost his father and now his own sister,” said the Sorceress mournfully. “While he demanded that the Sword of Protection to be sealed away, the Council of Elders argued that She-Ra was necessary for the protection of Eternia. They fought for many days until they came to an agreement: they would choose a new She-Ra, but this time she would be properly trained before she was sent into battle. The Elders created a being that would oversee the training of future She-Ra’s, long after King Grayskull’s son and the Council of Elders vanished. They called their creation Light Hope.

“In time, a new She-Ra would be chosen. And when she fell in battle, another would take her place, creating the legend of a warrior who could never truly be killed…. But that is a lie. She-Ra can be killed. And she has…for so many generations.”

“How many She-Ra’s have their been?” Adam asked, feeling a great weight in the pit of his stomach.

“…Too many,” said the Sorceress, staring down at the floor in remorse. “Too many lives lost…too much innocent blood spilled…. Mothers and daughters, sisters and wives, all sacrificed for the honor of Grayskull. A ‘necessary sacrifice’ the Elders would say.”

“I don’t think King Grayskull would have been happy knowing how many people died in his name,” said Adam sourly.

“No, he wouldn’t have,” the Sorceress agreed.

“So what happened to her?” Adam asked. “If She-Ra’s supposed to be some everlasting cycle of warrior women, how come I’ve never seen or heard of her before?”

“The last to take the mantle of She-Ra was an explorer named Mara from the land of Drisdos,” said the Sorceress. “She was a young and passionate woman with the ferocity to match the mightiest of Eternia’s warriors, but was also compassionate and willing to do what was right, even at at the cost of her own. The Council of Elders clearly thought she was the perfect She-Ra, but Mara did not agree. She did not want to be a hero, she did not want the weight of the world on her shoulders, but she had no choice. She could not argue against the Elder’s judgment. Mara became…subdued in her final days. I can only imagine what must have gone through her mind when the Sword of Protection was thrust upon her, as the sword had come to be considered a death sentence in that time.

“One day, she would leave Eternia to lead an expedition to Eternia's sister planet, Etheria, which hosted a wealth of magical energy far greater than that of Eternia. The explorers hoped to colonize on Etheria and study the way its magic flowed through the planet, perhaps even replicate it here on Eternia. But…something occurred on Etheria. I do not know all of it as many details from that era are lost even to me, but a great tragedy occurred that forced Mara to cast Etheria into Despondos at great personal sacrifice. For one thousand years, Etheria and the Sword of Protection were seemingly lost forever…. That is, until today.”

“So that world that appeared in the sky,” said Adam in realization. “That’s Etheria? How did it get back? I thought escaping Despondos was supposed to be impossible.”

“The same way that it was cast into Despondos in the first place – by the Sword of Protection,” said the Sorceress. “Though it was lost for many centuries, I felt the power of Grayskull flowing through the Sword of Protection once again starting two years ago, when a new She-Ra had emerged. Though I knew she existed, I could not reach her nor could I offer her aid, for my duty as guardian of the castle bound me in place. I could only watch from a distance as the new She-Ra faced many dangers and suffered terrible pain, both in body and heart. I lost sight of her six months ago when she stopped calling upon the power of the Elders until today, when she forced open Despondos and returned Etheria to its natural orbit.”

“Wow, that’s kinda impressive,” said Adam interestingly. “Pulling a whole planet out of Despondos. I doubt even He-Man could do that. So who is she? Who’s the new She-Ra?”

“Her name is Adora,” said the Sorceress, sounding surprisingly hesitant. “She is…your sister, Prince Adam.”

“…What?” Adam muttered slowly, eyes wide and mouth open slightly. Was he hearing her right? Did she say…?

“I understand your confusion,” said the sorceress sympathetically. “I, too, was surprised when I felt the Power of the Elders reaching out to the Sword of Protection for the first time in centuries, learning that a young Eternian girl was alive on a world thought lost forever when the Eternians should no longer exist there. I peered into the past to learn of this young woman’s story, discovering that she was the child taken from your family many years ago.

“The one who stolen your sister – another man named Hordak – had also been a prisoner of Despondos and was attempting to break free when he arrived in your parent’s bedchamber. As you know, your father drove him back, but lost your sister in the process. Adora was raised on Etheria under the false pretenses that she was serving the greater good, her pure heart thankfully shielded from the darkness by the love of a young Thunderian girl who stayed by her side. Whether it was by chance or by destiny, Adora would find the Sword of Protection and embark on a great and perilous journey, one filled with love and tragedy. Much like your journey, Prince Adam.”

“And she brought Etheria back?” Adam asked urgently.

“I believe she had help from the other inhabitants,” said the Sorceress, “like the Thunderian girl, Catra, who landed quite alarming in your mother’s garden.”

“Those lights in the sky – she was one of them, wasn’t she?” said Adam quickly. “Which one was she? Where did she go?”

“I fear that Adora has been thrown into the Dark Hemisphere,” the Sorceress answered, “landing at the base of Snake Mountain.”

“That’s Skeletor’s home turf!” said Adam, his stomach filled with dread at the thought of his sister – the one he, admittedly, didn’t really know – falling into the clutches of his archenemy. “We have to go save her!”

“Adam, please wait for just a moment – “

“How can I wait when I know my long-lost sister is being held prisoner in Snake Mountain?” cried Adam, who had turned away and dissolved into frantic muttering. “I need to tell everybody about this. Father, Man-At-Arms – we should rally all the Masters together and attack Snake Mountain while they’re off guard. But how do I explain to mother and father that I know my sister is trapped there. Ugh, I’ll ask Man-At-Arms when I see him; he’ll think of some excuse.”

“Adam, you must listen to me – “

“Sorry, no time!” Adam yelled over his shoulder as he broke into a run, Cringer nipping at his heels. “C’mon, Cringer, we need to get back to the palace on the double!”

“Adam, wait, there is still much you need to know!” the sorceress shouted urgently.

But her words fell on deaf ears; Adam was already halfway across the castle by now, and there was no way of talking to him when he set his mind on something, even if it was a terrible idea. The winged guardian slumped her shoulders with a defeated sigh…then slowly turned toward the base of her throne with an unamused look.

“Are you planning to hide there forever, little Thunderian?"

Catra stepped around the steps, smiling and waving sheepishly.

* * *

Adam was practically flying through the forest atop Cringer’s back at breakneck speed, his mind in complete disarray that he had not considered transforming into He-Man before he left the castle. His thoughts rested solely on the sister he never had the chance to meet, the one that had gone missing for close to twenty years only to literally fall out of the sky and into Skeletor’s lap. He thought back to this morning when his parents first told him about her and the inner turmoil that still lingered in their eyes. He hated seeing his mother upset; hated the way his father, the strongest man Adam knew, look so defeated. He was going to change that – he was going to save his sister, Adora, and make them happy again.

“Faster, Cringer!” Adam all but yelled, ducking under the speeding low branches. “There’s no telling what Skeletor might be doing to her!”

Cringer mewled softly, but nonetheless started picking up speed. They leaped over a fallen log –

**_BAM! _**Adam and Cringer were blasted out of the air by a surprise laser from the front, flinging them in opposite directions. As he was tossed across the air, a whip wrapped around his waist and pulled him to the side, pulling him into a spiky tail that nailed hard him in the stomach. He bounced off the ground once…twice…before he was tackled from behind by a scarlet blur that punted him across the trees. A mechanized claw snatched him out of the air by his ankle and slammed him into the ground, making his entire body throb and his vision blur. The young prince was only faintly aware of the bubbly laughter in his ear as someone unstrapped the scabbard on his back and remove it.

A few seconds pass without another attack before Adam started to pull himself to his hands and feet, hissing as he felt a sharp stab in his ribs; one of them was definitely broken, he thought. Adam forced himself to flip around so that he was sitting and blinked several times. He gazed around as his vision came into focus and fell upon the assembled group in front of him.

Skeletor stood atop the fallen tree trunk, Havoc Staff at his side with his cape billowing dramatically in the wind. Standing on ground level around his were the rest of his Evil Warriors, all of whom were grinning and laughing wickedly. Mer-Man broke from the rest of the group and bowed his head as he presented something to Skeletor – it was a sword…. Adam gasped and reached over his shoulder, only realizing now that his Sword of Power was not there. It was in the hands of Skeletor, who looked at the blade up and down as if he were admiring it.

Skeletor turned his gaze toward Adam with a low, malevolent cackle.

“A pleasure to see you again…He-Man….”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I always figured that if Adora ever did end up on Eternia that she would transform in front of the bad guys first chance she got. She lacks the same kind of discretion as her brother and doesn’t understand the consequences of having their secret revealed given how she lets everyone know she’s She-Ra. And once the villains know about the transformation, it’s only a few short steps before they realize that Adam is never around when He-Man shows up and put the pieces together.


	4. Stars Crossed, Part 3

Adam rose cautiously to his feet, his ribs still aching, and his mind racing. Lost in the forest outside Castle Grayskull, surrounded by Skeletor and his Evil Warriors, his Sword of Power in the hands of his archenemy, none of the Masters knowing where he was, and his only ally was Cringer, who was shivering behind Adam’s legs. Adam’s situation already looked bleak – and it only became worse as Skeletor leered down on him with a satisfied chuckle and called him out:

“A pleasure to see you again…He-Man….”

It felt like a rock had dropped in Adam’s stomach. Skeletor called him He-Man – he knew Adam’s secret. But…but that was impossible, the young prince thought to himself. Adam knew he didn’t let anything slip about his secret identity, and he was confident Man-At-Arms and Teela would die before betraying his trust. Skeletor had not known of his identity this morning, Adam was certain, so what changed in only a handful of hours? He would figure that out later, Adam decided; for now, he needed to convince Skeletor he was mistaken.

“What? Who? Me?” Adam scoffed, shaking his head in a joking sort of way. “You think I’m He-Man? I know you don’t have any eyes, Skeletor, but I think even you can tell the difference between the puny Prince of Eternia and a ten-foot wall of muscles – “

“There’s no point in trying to hide it, Prince Adam,” Skeletor interjected. “I know your secret. You made up the clever ruse of the cowardly prince who always ran from confrontation, only to secretly transform into He-Man away from prying eyes. Not only did you change your appearance, but your mannerism and technique, completely selling the idea that you and He-Man were two separate people. I’m man enough to admit when I have been bamboozled. You played us all for fools these past four years, Prince Adam. I am genuinely impressed.

“A part of me is still kicking myself for never seeing the obvious signs. When I sent Beast Man to track down He-Man’s scent, he instead brought back a garment belonging to Prince Adam. I had dismissed it as Beast Man’s incompetence, but now I see he was right all along. I do apologize for doubting your abilities, Beast Man,” he added to the monstrous ape.

“Aw, thanks, boss,” said Beast Man proudly.

“Then there was the incident in Subternia where you, Randor, and Man-At-Arms sought to interfere in my quest to attack Castle Grayskull from underground. You disappeared halfway through the fight and then He-Man mysterious showed up at Grayskull’s underground gates, even though I knew there was no possible way that word could have reached him so quickly. Then there was the time I gathered my Council of Evil to lay siege on Castle Grayskull. Prince Adam fell into the abyss and He-Man appeared from the same place minutes later, all the while, Prince Adam returns safely at home the very next day, alive and unharmed. I should have been able to see it from the start….”

“Okay…a lot of compelling points,” said Adam, who was starting to sweat a little. Skeletor had really thought this through; time for a new tactic “Well, if I am He-Man, then you better watch out! I’ll change right now and kick all your – “

“Oh, I’m afraid that won’t be happening any time soon,” said Skeletor with a menacing laugh, examining Adam’s sword. “Not without this, at least. You need this sword as well as an incantation to transform into the musclebound buffoon. Something with the word ‘Grayskull’ in it, I presume. I told you, Prince Adam,” he turned toward the young prince, whose expression was delightfully defiant, “I know your secret. And now, after four years of humiliation, it’s time I get what is owed…. Attack, but don’t kill him! I want him brought to me alive!”

Beast Man was the first to break rank. He let out an Eternia-tremoring roar and leaped forward with his claws extended. Adam rolled out of the way to the right while Cringer yowled and pounced to the left; Adam hissed and held his side, completely forgetting his injury. As Beast Man slammed into the ground where they once stood, kicking up a huge cloud of dust that obscured his vision, Adam called out:

“Cringer, get back to the palace! Find Teela! She’ll know what to do!”

The green tiger hesitated for a moment, deciding between whether to stay with Adam or carry out the orders given. In the end, Cringer turned and bounced away into the forest. Tri-Klops saw the tiger trying to run and attempted to shoot him down with his optic laser, but Cringer ran behind the trees which took the shots for him and disappeared into the foliage.

“Forget the cat!” Skeletor yelled at Tri-Klops. “Get the prince!”

Adam had made a break for it into the dense forest. He could hear the Evil Warriors smashing their way through the trees behind him; it would only be a matter of moments before they caught up.

“This is bad…,” Adam mumbled, panting as he ducked under the low branches. “Skeletor knows who I am…knows how I turn into He-Man…took my sword away to _stop _me from becoming He-Man…and now I’m being hunted by his lackeys…. I should have listened to the Sorceress and stayed at the castle. Augh, how did he figure it out? He knew everything right down to the activation phrase…. I have to get back to Castle Grayskull at once…. But first, I need to ditch the welcome wagon – “

The words barely left his lips before a laser shot carved a large hole in the trunk where his right hand rested. Adam looked over his shoulder to see Trap Jaw leading the Evil Warriors with his cybernetic arm extended in its rifle form, taking wild shots at the young prince, only to miss by wide margins – he really was a terrible shot. Adam dashed a few more paces before he took cover behind a tree and bended one of the lower branches until it threatened to break. He waited until he heard the heavy footfalls get closer before releasing the branch, which whipped around and whacked Trap Jaw across the face, knocking the cybernetic villain flat on his back.

While Trap Jaw was disoriented, Adam jumped out from his hiding spot, stomping on Trap Jaw’s face for good measure, and grabbed the cyborg by his mechanical arm. There was no real explanation for how he did it, but Adam was able to force the laser rifle to shoot both Clawful and Whiplash in the chests, sending them flying backwards into the brush. Tri-Klops, Beast Man, and Mer-Man had already ducked for cover after the first shot had gone off, and by the time any of them dared to poke their heads out, Adam had already disappeared, leaving Trap Jaw moaning on the ground, rubbing the sore spot on his face.

“Hey, where’d he go?” Mer-Man gurgled

“Don’t tell me you imbeciles lost him,” Tri-Klops spat heatedly.

“Hey, you lost him, too!” Beast Man growled in return.

“Just shut up and find him before Skeletor has our heads!” Tri-Klops commanded.

Beast Man growled in irritation, but nonetheless moved away from cover and stalked further into the forest with Tri-Klops stepping close behind him. Mer-Man, armed with his trident, began to follow when something dropped down from the treetops in front of him, letting out a gurgled shout.

It was Adam, who took advantage of the Aquatican’s surprise and made a grab for the Trident. The two pulled back and forth between them until Adam suddenly fell to the ground on his back, planting his feet on Mer-Man’s abdomen, and flipped the amphibious warrior overhead to send him sailing face first into a tree. Adam flipped back onto his feet, twirling the trident between his hands like he had seen Teela do many times, and took a readied stance. Mer-Man only just got to his hands and knees when Adam twirled his own trident around and slammed the blunt side against the Aquatican’s head, dropping him back onto the ground in a useless heap.

Unfortunately, Beast Man and Tri-Klops obviously heard the commotion behind them and spotted the young prince right as he knocked Mer-Man out. Beast Man let out another inhumane roar as he lunged forward and Tri-Klops, alternating to the red lens of his headgear, shot fireballs from a distance. Adam used the trident to slap away the fireballs, which unfortunately incinerated several of the trees surrounding them, before rolled to the side away from Beast Man’s claws. The ape-like monster spun around sharply with his claws extended outwards, swiping at the air near Adam’s neck, but the young prince deftly ducked underneath and jabbed the butt end of the trident into Beast Man’s gut, forcing him to double over with an audible “Ooph!” Then, drawing inspiration from Teela, Adam jumped over Beast Man while locking the trident’s staff against his neck. Once Adam planted his feet on the ground, he pulled at the trident, lifting Beast Man over his shoulder and slammed him face down in the ground.

While impressed that he managed to flip a monster like Beast Man, he had little time to pat himself on the back when Tri-Klops started shooting at him again. Adam narrowly dodged the flying fireballs by swerving left and right, then he raised Mer-Man’s trident and threw it. The middle pike of the trident stabbed through Tri-Klops’ lens. The one-eyed villain cried out, his headgear sparking, before he ripped the trident free and tossed it aside. Tri-Klops rotated his headgear to an unbroken lens…just as Adam ran up and punched him across the face, sending him sprawling to the forest floor.

With last of the Evil Warriors down, Adam took off through the trees before they could get back up.

“Wow, were they always that easy?” said Adam, pride swelling in his chest. “Huh, I guess I didn’t need He-Man after – “

**_BAM!_** A burst of magical energy slammed him from the side, vaulting him into a tree hard enough to shake several leaves off the branches as Adam fell flat on his front. The Prince of Eternia grimaced, the pain in his side now doubled, as he tried to push himself up again. But someone pressed their foot against Adam's back, pinning him to the ground. Adam turned his head over his shoulder and stared up at Skeletor; the skull-faced wizard looked very menacing with his smoking Havoc Staff pointed at the prince’s head and the Sword of Power clutched in his other hand.

“That’s enough out of you, little prince,” said Skeletor. “Even without the power of He-Man, you lasted much longer than I would have expected. I don’t know whether to be impressed by you, or disappointed in _them,_” he hissed out the last part as his Evil Warriors shuffled around them, groaning.

“Hey, you got him,” said Trap Jaw sheepishly.

“No thanks to you worthless morons,” Skeletor snarled; the Evil Warriors flinched fretfully. “I will deal with you all later.”

“So…,” Adam grunted, trying to push Skeletor off to no avail. “What’re you gonna do now? Gonna finish me off?”

“Oh, certainly, little prince, but not yet,” Skeletor said with a low chuckle. “I’ve waited four years for this chance and I intend to savor every moment of it. I want to see the look of despair in your eyes as I take the Power of the Elders from Castle Grayskull.”

“Yeah, major flaw in your plan,” Adam said confidently. “How’re you going to get inside the castle? The Sorceress won’t let you, and there’s no way I’m gonna help you get it.”

But to Adam’s surprise, Skeletor shook with delighted laughter, quickly joined by Evil Warriors, like they knew some secret that Adam didn’t.

“You think I would make another assault on Castle Grayskull so soon if I didn’t have a plan?” said Skeletor once the laughter died down. “As we speak, my secret weapon is on her way to retrieve the Power of the Elders. She should be arriving at the castle gates any moment now. We shouldn’t keep her waiting when she makes her triumphant return…. Bring him!”

Skeletor stepped away from Adam, only for Beast Man and Trap Jaw to pull Adam up to his feet. He had no choice but to follow behind Skeletor as the Evil Warriors marched their way back toward Castle Grayskull. All the while, Adam couldn’t help wonder what sort of secret weapon Skeletor had up his sleeve, and whether or not he could stop them before it’s too late….

* * *

Adora couldn’t help making an audible gulping noise. It comes as no surprise, finding herself standing on the edge of a seemingly bottomless abyss, staring up at the gates of Castle Grayskull, whose name Adora realized must have come from the fanged skull that covered the castle’s front door. It was a lot more intimidating than the Crystal Castle, that’s for sure.

She took a deep breath to calm her building nerves.

“Okay, Adora, you can do this,” she muttered to herself. “Just got to get in and steal an orb of ancient magic from a powerful sorceress. Easy, right? At least it can’t be any worse than the time Catra put mashed ration bars in Shadow Weaver’s cloak. Okay, here we go.” She took hold of her bracelet, transforming it into the Sword of Protection, and raised it heroically over her head. “Eternia!”

And…nothing happened…. A pregnant pause of still silence passed over the chasm; Adora shifted her weight awkwardly, realizing how ridiculous she must look to anyone who might be passing by. She actually waved her sword around like it would do something. It didn’t.

“Uh…Eternia?” Adora said uncertainly. “She-Ra? Light Hope? Etheria? Abracadabra?”

Still nothing. Adora dropped her arm, threw her head back, and groaned.

“Ugh, come on!” Adora complained loudly. “Why won’t you just _open_?”

An earsplitting screech echoed across the silence chasm, nearly making Adora jump out of her skin. She took several paces back as the castle drawbridge fall forward and slammed down on the edge of the cliff with a resounding _thud_! Adora was hesitant, her gaze roaming from the bridge at her feet to the dark, cavernous entrance on the other side; the idea that she was essentially walking into a skull’s mouth did nothing to calm her nerves.

“Okay, so the password is ‘open’,” Adora mumbled. “Good to know….”

Adora held on to the Sword of Protection with both hands before she crossed the bridge and stepped inside.

As someone who had grown up in the Fright Zone during the height of Hordak’s reign, Adora can safely say that Castle Grayskull was a hundred times scarier. The Fright Zone might have been a nightmarish labyrinth of smoke and metal, but at least it had electricity, heat, and a sense of a thriving community. Castle Grayskull, on the other hand was darker than the tunnels of Halfmoon, colder than the mountains of the Kingdom of Snows, and had the general aura that no one had lived here for a thousand years. The closest thing Adora had to compare this with was the ghost village she, Bow, and Glimmer had accidentally discovered in the Whispering Woods.

Adora paced slowly through the massive stone halls – seriously, it was much bigger than how it looked outside – her fingers wrapped so tight around the sword’s hilt her wounded arm was starting to sting. She was extremely paranoid, jumping left and right every few seconds, and pausing at every corner to peek around the edge. As she walked along the corridors, Adora thought she saw someone lurking in the dark and tried to jump them, only to realize it was a headless suit of armor covered in cobwebs. She eventually came to a sort of intersection with eight different corridors leading in multiple directions. Adora took a moment to look down each hallway…and realized that they all looked exactly the same. Yep, she was lost.

“Ugh, I knew I should have asked for directions,” Adora moaned, pacing around with uncertainty. “Now where do I go?”

“Adora…” An ethereal voice echoed.

“_Waaah!_” Adora wailed, swinging her sword around frantically. “Who said that? Who’s there?”

“Adora…”

“Light Hope, is that you?” Adora called hesitantly. “Better not be…. Already had enough spiders for one lifetime….”

“Adora…come…this way….”

Something caught Adora’s attention in her peripherals to the left. At the end of one of the long tunnels was a faint glimmer of light, like a beacon. Adora contemplated whether or not to follow – experience with Light Hope made her mistrusting of incorporeal voices. But, Adora thought, she was already hopelessly lost, so there wasn’t much else she could do. That being said, Adora did hold up the Sword of Protection at her side before she dashed down the long corridor.

Adora followed the light, which seemed to be moving further away, leading her deeper into the heart of the castle. She passed through a cavernous chamber of pillars and gargoyles, jumped down a lengthy flight of stairs three steps at a time, and turned the corner to a small stone bridge leading to a multi-leveled structure hanging over a pitch-black hole. Adora was breathing hard from the excessive amount of running by the time she ran inside the structure, brushing the strands of loose hair out of her eyes and looking around. She barely caught a glimpse of the mysterious light reflecting off the wall of one of the tunnels four floors above. Adora groaned in exasperation, but begrudgingly raced up the stairs on the side of the building, climbing all the way up to the fourth floor, and ran down yet another lengthy corridor.

Adora wondered how long she would have to keep chasing this strange light when she reached the end of the corridor and, to her surprise, found someone waiting for her.

The only word that Adora could describe her was…mystical; like a goddess in human form. She exuded a sense of magical might that not even Shadow Weaver and the sorcerers of Mysticor could hope to match. Great hawk-like wings sprouting from her back like a savage angel, piercing narrow eyes that cut into Adora’s soul, the head of her bird staff radiating with the mysterious light that she had followed throughout the castle. Adora was starting to think she didn’t plan this whole thing through….

“You…,” Adora began, not really knowing what she wanted to say.

“I am the Sorceress of Castle Grayskull,” the Sorceress announced herself, her words echoing with power despite being so soft. “We meet at last, Princess Adora.”

“You know my name?” Adora asked before she could stop herself, caught by surprise.

“I have known about you for quite some time,” said the Sorceress. “You are Adora, soldier raised by the Evil Horde, champion of the Great Rebellion, and She-Ra, the Princess of Power and defender of Etheria. I had hoped we would one day meet, though not under these unusual circumstances.”

“Er, right,” said Adora, taken aback by how knowledgeable the bird woman was. She shook her head, however, when she remembered her mission. “If you know who I am, then you know why I’m here.”

“You have come seeking the Power of the Elders,” said the Sorceress bluntly.

“Uh…yeah,” said Adora, blinking. “Can you…take me to it?”

The Sorceress went silent for a moment, slowly raising her staff to the air; Adora lifted the Sword of Protection defensively. But the winged-woman tapped the stone floor three times with the butt of her staff, and the crevices briefly flashed with a golden light, making Adora jump. Before she knew what was happening, the section they were standing on began to sink below the floor –

All the while, a pair of mismatched eyes and twitchy ears watched them from the darkness.

As they descended into the hidden area below, Adora couldn’t fight back the urge to gasp as she looked around. The chamber they had entered expanded in every direction with no visible end in sight that Adora knew there was no logical way it could fit inside Castle Grayskull; they must had moved into another reality without her notice. Towering pillars of glowing-blue crystals rose from the great abyss below like trees, sprouting clusters of more crystals. Adora internally wondered if these crystals were used in the construction of the Crystal Castle. It would make a lot of sense, given their connection, Adora thought….

They came to a stop at a crystalized platform no different from the others. The Sorceress floated off the stones, Adora jumping after her, when the blonde princess noticed the stone floor section they arrived on break off and float back toward the unseen ceiling. No going back now, Adora thought….

The Sorceress stopped next to the crystal cluster in the center and turned to Adora, who was still holding on to her sword like a lifeline. Then, without a word or gesture, the crystal slid sideways and revealed a hidden pocket behind it. Inside, to Adora’s thrill and apprehension, was the Orb of Power just as Skeletor described it.

It was…indescribable. Appearance wise, it just looked like a crystal ball with no special qualities. But there was a sort of…presence it gave off, a sort of magical radiance that couldn’t be seen, only felt. Adora was no sorceress herself – hell, she barely understood how She-Ra worked after two years – but she could tell that this tiny bauble was without a doubt the most powerful item she had ever come across.

“This is…is it really…?” Adora gasped.

“The vast collective power of the Council of Elders,” said the Sorceress calmly. “A power originally wielded by your ancestor, King Grayskull. It is the source of He-Man’s power, the source of She-Ra’s power. Within it holds the greatest power in the known universe.”

This was it, Adora thought. This is what she was looking for. Now she could help everyone in the Dark Hemisphere. Adora reached out for the Orb of Power…only to be cut off by the Sorceress’s staff. The Princess of Power stepped back and turned to the winged-woman, her expression unreadable.

“I cannot allow you to leave with that,” the Sorceress said firmly.

“But there are people who need help and this is the only way to do that!” Adora argued. “Skeletor – “

“Has deceived you,” the Sorceress interjected. “Skeletor does not seek to help others, only himself. With the Power of the Elders, Skeletor will reign darkness over Eternia the likes none have seen in a thousand years. Skeletor is pure evil.”

“You’re wrong!” Adora denied. “He might have done bad things when he worked for Hordak, but that doesn’t make him evil….” Her mind drifted off to several people she had made the mistake of leaving behind, including a certain cat girl. “A lot of people have been used by the Horde, but that doesn’t mean they’re bad. After all, Skeletor was the one who banished Hordak – “

“That is but another lie that Skeletor has told,” said the Sorceress cuttingly. “The Hordak he speaks of was banished thousands of years ago, long before any of us were born. The Hordak from your world is a seperate entity – a clone, which you already know. Skeletor simply used the facts he knew about you and created a story that would appeal to your good nature. He has taken advantage of your blissful ignorance and kind heart.”

Adora went mute for a long moment, absorbing everything the winged-woman said. She lifted her gaze to meet the Sorceress’s and asked, “How do I know you’re not trying to deceive me? You remind me a lot of people who I thought I could trust, only to lie and betray me.”

“Yes, they have hurt you, haven’t they?” said the Sorceress, sounding almost sympathetic. “Shadow Weaver, who you had come to see as a mother, manipulated you in the cruelest of fashions. Even after you left her grip, the effects she had on you lingered for years, bringing you at odds with the people you love, even if it was unintentional. Light Hope, whom you clung to for answers about yourself, your home, your past, and your destiny. Denying you answers with secrets and half-truths to keep you under her control so that she may pursue her own goals – goals that put you and many others in grave peril.

“Your mistrust is understandable, Adora, and I do not fault you for your hesitation. I can only ask that you look deep inside your heart and ask yourself, ‘Am I doing the right thing?’ Only then will you find the answer you seek.”

Adora took a moment to contemplate her words, closing her eyes and humming in thought…. Which lasted all of about two seconds before Adora snapped her head back up, glaring at the Sorceress with the Sword of Protection raised and a fiery look in her eyes.

“You’re not gonna trick me!” she shouted defiantly.

If the Sorceress was surprised by the outcome, she didn’t show it. She stretched her wings at full length, raising the staff above her head as Adora rushed toward her. Adora swung her sword down in a high arc –

** _CRACK!_ **

* * *

Skeletor and his Evil Warriors had made it to the gates of Castle Grayskull, despite Adam’s repeated attempts to escape, typically involving, but not limited to: kicking Trap Jaw in the shins, biting Beast Man’s hand, getting Clawful and Whiplash to punch each other by asking who’s stronger, and just plain insulting Tri-Klops. Skeletor definitely looked like he wanted to blast Adam many times, but he reigned his fury in; he didn’t want to kill his greatest nemesis before he had a chance to witness his ultimate triumph. And to the evil overlord’s delight, the drawbridge was lowered by the time they showed up – something Skeletor only had the pleasure of seeing a handful of times.

“Well, it looks like our new friend managed to do her job right,” said Skeletor proudly, calling back at his henchmen. “You idiots might be out of a job after this.” The Evil Warriors grumbled under their breath, at which Skeletor leered over his shoulder. “What was that?”

“N-Nothing, Skeletor,” said Beast Man timidly.

“I thought not,” said Skeletor, turning back toward the castle mouth. “Our new recruit will be along any moment with the Power of the Elders in tow. And with its power, I will conquer not only Eternia,” he raised his hand toward the world above their heads as if to pluck it out of the sky, “but also to our new neighbors, Etheria.”

“You’re getting a little ahead of yourself,” said Adam, still fighting against his captors. “So what if you opened the front door. You’ll never get past the Sorceress.”

Skeletor opened his jaw to respond when he heard heavy footfalls coming from inside the castle. The master of evil turned around and watched in satisfaction as Adora came marching out the darkness like an obedient soldier. She looked like she had been put through the ringer; her jacket had half a dozen tears in the fabric and her hair had come undone from its signature ponytail, letting the golden strands fall over her face like a mop. The Sword of Protection was being dragged across the ground in her left hand and clutched in her right, to Skeletor’s rising glee, a radiant crystal orb. Despite its less than spectacular appearance, Skeletor could see the magical energy radiating from the orb like a bonfire in the night. Adam’s expression gave way to surprise and apprehension, which all but confirmed Skeletor’s belief that it was the Power of the Elders.

Skeletor crossed the drawbridge and met Adora halfway; the young woman stopped in front of the larger man and gazed up at him with a strange look. She seemed calm at the moment, but there was a flash of something in her eyes. Something that Skeletor didn’t like. Nevertheless, Adora held up the Orb of Power to present it to Skeletor.

“Here it is,” she said in a tired voice. “I had a lot of trouble getting it, but nothing I couldn’t handle.”

“Very impressive,” Skeletor complimented. “You have done us a great service, Adora.”

“Adora?” Adam gasped, going wide-eyed and staring at the girl. Did he hear right? Was this woman actually his…?

“Now, hand it over and we can – “ Skeletor said, reaching out for the orb.

But Adora pulled her hand back. She looked up at Skeletor with that strange look again, which he now understood was uncertainty.

“Did you mean it?” Adora asked suddenly. “When you said all that stuff about wanting to help. Was any of it true?”

“Are you starting to doubt me?” said Skeletor softly.

“Yes,” Adora replied.

“…Then you’re not as stupid as I thought,” Skeletor hissed.

Adora barely had the chance to look surprised before Skeletor leveled his Havok Staff with her chest and blasted her pointblank. She was thrown across the drawbridge, bouncing off the wood twice before landing facedown. The Sword of Protection flew out of her hand, stabbing the drawbridge upright, and the Orb of Power rolled near Skeletor’s feet. Skeletor leaned forward and reached for the orb, the feeling of ultimate victory welling up in his chest…when a strand of leather suddenly flew out of nowhere, wrapped around the Orb of Power, and pulled it away from his reach.

His eye sockets glowed red with outrage as he watched the Power of the Elders fly back to the mouth of Castle Grayskull and fell into the hand of some newcomer who emerged from the shadow of the fortress. A cat girl he had never seen before wearing an ornate headpiece, carrying a whip in her right hand and holding up the Orb of Power in the other, taunting him with a devilish grin that exposed her fangs.

“_Heeey, Skelly_,” said Catra teasingly, tossing the orb up and down. “Lose something?”

“…How many more vermin are infesting this castle?!” Skeletor screamed furiously.

“Hey, I take offense to that,” Catra complained. The Magicat immediately jumped into the air when Skeletor took a shot at her with his Havok Staff. “You know, Skelly, if I had a face like yours, I'd try and make up for it with some sort of personality!”

“Oh, don’t worry, I can happily arrange that!” Skeletor shouted, shooting another magic blast.

Catra immediately bounced away the moment she landed, narrowly dodging the shot, and threw herself over the edge of the drawbridge. The Magicat Princess twisted her body around in midair and snapped her whip toward Skeletor, successfully binding it around the Sword of Power still in his hand. Skeletor held a firm grip on the sword, not wanting to lose his trophy, but that was exactly what Catra had hoped for. She used his weight to pull herself back onto the bridge and threw herself at the wicked warrior, planted her feet into his chest for an extra powerful flying kick. Skeletor yelped as he was thrown backward, unwillingly losing his hold on the Sword of Power, and fell over the bridge himself, barely managing the grab the edge before he plummeted into the abyss.

Catra landed naturally on her feet, her whip and Adam’s sword in her hands and the Orb of Power tucked securely underneath her arm. She turned toward Adora, who was getting up to her hands and feet with a pained groan, and walked over to kneel next to her fiancé. Adora frowned and glared up at Catra.

“You couldn’t have come up with a plan that didn’t involve using me as bait?” said Adora.

“Hey, you were the one trying to steal a ball of ultimate magical power for the bad guys,” Catra quipped. “Seriously, how could you fall for such an obvious trick. I mean, the guy has a skull for a face, Adora! If that doesn’t scream bad guy, I don’t know what does.”

“I try not to judge people, okay!” Adora argued.

“Well, you’re just lucky I stopped you before you did something stupid,” said Catra with a soft smile.

“Well, it was a close call,” Adora admitted. “But everything you told me…about She-Ra, and Eternia, and…my brother….”

“Speaking of which….” said Catra slowly.

They turned their heads in the direction of the Evil Warriors still standing at the end of the bridge; none of them had moved the entire time, looking equal parts confused and uncertain. None of them were paying any attention to Adam, which the young prince had noticed when he felt the slack in Beast Man and Trap Jaw’s grips. Taking advantage of their distraction, Adam twisted his legs around and brought his knee up to slam into Trap Jaw’s pelvis, making the cyborg double over. Adam ripped his hand away, then turned around to grab Beast Man by the wrist. Before the monstrous warrior knew what he was doing, Adam pulled him around and slammed him into the other Evil Warriors behind them, knocking them all into one big pile of bodies.

Adam broke into a run toward Adora and Catra before the Evil Warriors could collect themselves. He passed by Skeletor, who had pulled himself up by his elbows, and waved at him tauntingly before going on his way; Skeletor’s eye holes were burning-red now. Adam stopped in front of the girls as Catra helped Adora to her feet.

“Nice save there, Catra,” Adam complimented the cat girl.

“Yeah, I have a talent for saving dumb blondes for making stupid decisions,” said Catra with a grin like her namesake.

“Since when?” Adora scoffed.

“Since…. Shut up!” Catra spat after a short pause. She gestured between the two and said, “Adora, this is Adam, Prince of Eternia and whatnot. Adam, this is Adora, my dimwitted fiancé. Hey, wait, if Adam is the prince, and he’s your brother, then doesn’t that make you a princess, Adora? I mean, I always call you princess, but now that it’s official – “

Both Adam and Adora tuned her out after that, both of them staring openly at one another like they were seeing some strange new species of animal. Despite the obvious differences, there were so much they had in common: the same shade of dirty-blonde hair, the grayish-blue eyes, similar facial structure…. It’s like looking in a mirror, Adam thought. Well, a reverse gender mirror, but still.

“Wow…,” Adora broke the silence. “You look…just like me….”

“Well, I guess that’s to be expected, being twins and all,” Adam chuckled awkwardly, scratching the back of his head.

“I didn’t believe Catra and the Sorceress when they told me at first,” Adora breathed. “But it’s really true…. I have a brother…I have a family. Eternia…this is my home.”

“Yeah, I get it,” said Adam understandingly. “It’s a lot to take in, believe me. But…,” He stepped forward, resting his hands supportively on Adora’s – his sister’s – shoulders. “But we’ll work it out. Together. Promise.”

Adora smiled softly while resting her hand on her brother’s, feeling at ease for the first time since she arrived on this strange world…. And, predictably, such heartwarming moments rarely last long. Case in point: Skeletor finally pulled himself back onto Castle Grayskull’s bridge, leering at his minions as they disentangled themselves.

“What at you idiots waiting for?” he snarled, jabbing his staff toward the heroes. “Get them!”

“You guys mind wrapping things up?” said Catra urgently as the Evil Warrior began crossing the bridge. "Cause we’re gonna need some serious muscle right about now.”

“Probably a good idea,” said Adam, holding out his hand. “My sword….”

Catra tossed the Sword of Power sideways to the young prince, who snatched it out of the air and withdrew the blade from its scabbard while Adora pulled her sword out of the bridge. The Evil Warriors were halfway across when Adam and Adora shared a look and raised their sword high above their heads, shouting in unison:

“**_By the power – _**“

“**_For the honor – _**“

“**_\- of Grayskull!_**”

The Orb of Power, which was still tucked securely in Catra’s armpit, unleashed a bright flash of light that caused the Magicat to wince and turn her head away; she still had the sense to hold onto it, though. Two bolts of ethereal energy sprang from the crystal ball, arcing into the air and coming down onto the points of the Swords of Power and Protection like lightning rods. The brother and sister duo exploded into more blinding flashes (“Do they seriously need to do that every time?” Catra complained.) that gave the Evil Warriors pause, raising their arms to shield their eyes.

The twin lights faded in a handful of seconds and there, at the mouth of Castle Grayskull like a pair of towering sentinels, stood He-Man and She-Ra side-by-side with confidence and pride…. At least until She-Ra looked over at her brother and realized he was a good head and shoulders taller than her…and his muscles were bigger than her head…and his outfit, as sparse as it was, actually worked well with appearance instead of this weird one-piece-bodysuit-skirt thing she wore…. She-Ra frowned at He-Man.

“That is so not fair,” She-Ra complained.

He-Man chuckled before leaping forward, bulldozing through the Evil Warriors with ease. Catra walked over to her fiancé’s side as they watched the Strongest Man in the Universe punch Beast Man in the face, throwing him all the way back to the trees. She let out an impressed whistle.

“I’m not gonna lie to you,” said Catra as He-Man shouldered Clawful to the ground, “but your brother is insanely hot when he’s like this.”

“_CATRA!_” screamed She-Ra, scandalized.

“C’mon, Adora, look at him!” Catra shouted defensively. They watched He-Man lift Whiplash above his head as if he weighed no more than a loaf of bread, his bulging muscles rippling. “He’d make even net girl and spinny turn straight.”

“Yeah…well…I have better hair than him!” said She-Ra, crossing her arms with a pout.

“It’s not a competition, Adam,” said Catra, patting her on the arm.

“I’m Adora!” She-Ra cried, actually starting to panic a little. Did Catra actually…. That thought was cut off when Catra started laughing obnoxiously.

“Honestly, Adora, you make it too easy,” said Catra, smirking in a way that Adora knew she was messing with her.

She-Ra rolled her eyes with an irritable groan, raised the Sword of Protection above her head, and charged at the Evil Warriors with a furious battle cry, Catra trailing behind with a crack of her whip.

He-Man had just tossed Trap Jaw aside by the time She-Ra joined the fight, crossing her sword with Tri-Klops’. The fact that the one-eyed man had not buckled under the pressure of She-Ra’s power surprised Adora. Only now did she realize that she had rarely fought anyone on Etheria who could match her strength and now she was surrounded by enemies who were not only equal, but maybe even stronger than her. Regardless, She-Ra pushed all her weight against the Sword of Protection and Tri-klops visibly started to bend back, when the Evil Warrior’s headgear suddenly switched to the blue lens and started gathering energy right in She-Ra’s face. Thankfully, Catra leaped over the scene and snapped her whip dead center in Tri-Klops’s eye, smashing the lens. Tri-Klops stumbled back with a strangled cry and turned his headgear to the last remaining lens he had left, just in time to see She-Ra grab him by the front of his vest and throw him across the field like a baseball.

Whiplash snapped his barbed tail at He-Man while the muscular hero deflected Trap Jaw’s laser shots with the flat end of his sword. He-Man must have sensed him coming because he turned around immediately and grabbed Whiplash by the tail before it could connect. The Caligar warrior let out a surprised scream as He-Man pulled him by his tail and tossed him into Trap Jaw, who slapped his ally aside before taking more pot shots at the hero. He-Man deftly jumped left and right around the laser fire, closing the gap between them in seconds and ending up within reaching distance of the cyborg. He grabbed Trap Jaw’s face in a claw hold, effortlessly lifting him into the air before slamming him back down with the force to form a spiderweb of cracks in the ground. Trap Jaw moaned weakly, but remained conscious long enough to point his rifle arm to He-Man’s face at pointblank range…only for the heroic warrior to crush the muzzle with his bare hand like it was made of paper. Trap Jaw whimpered and fell back with a thud.

Catra had just knocked Mer-Man flat on his back when something snapped at her feet, making the Magicat jump with a frightened yowl. She turned to Beast Man, brandishing his own whip and gesturing her to come-hither.

“Here, kitty, kitty,” he said with a toothy grin.

“Ew, that sound so wrong coming from you,” said Catra disgustingly.

Beast Man’s smile curled into a nasty snarl. He lashed his whip at the Magicat, but Catra had snapped her own at the same time, both cords meeting in the air and binding around one another. Catra tried to pull back, but Beast Man was obviously the stronger of the two and tugged the whip back his way with a great lurch. Catra was sent flying toward Beast Man, who extended his claw to grab her. But Catra skillfully twisted her body in the air, allowing her to dodge the hand, then used his extended arm as a springboard before driving her knee in his face. Beast Man staggered with a grimace with Catra stepped on his shoulder to jump away. Unfortunately, Beast Man was surprisingly fast as he caught Catra by her ankle and threw her face down on the ground. Catra didn’t have a chance to crawl away before Beast Man spun her around on her back and wrapped his beefy hand around her throat. The Magicat hissed and clawed at his arm, but the Evil Warrior laughed at her futile attempt as he raised his own claw above his head –

Beast Man felt someone tapping on his shoulder and turned around curiously. The last thing he saw was She-Ra’s furious expression before her fist connected with his face. The monstrous warrior hit the ground like a sack of bricks; Catra took several sharp gasps of breath when his grip came loose. She-Ra grinned in that cocky sort of way that said ‘you totally owe me’ and offered her hand to Catra. The Magicat rolled her eyes, but took She-Ra’s hand and allowed herself to be pulled to her feet.

Throughout the entire battle, Skeletor had been standing on the sidelines, watching as his henchmen were, predictably, trounced by He-Man and his new allies. He wasn’t remotely phased when the bodies of Tri-Klops and Clawful were dropped at his feet by He-Man. The Skull-faced warrior only stared down at them with obvious disappointment.

“I don’t know why I even bother with you worthless fools,” said Skeletor coldly.

He turned his head up to the battlefield and found, once again, that all of his minions were strewed across the ground in various states of pain. He-Man stood across the field from Skeletor, sword in hand, soon joined by She-Ra and Catra on either side of him. The feline, Skeletor noticed, was still holding on to the Orb of Power….

“You’re done, Skeletor,” He-Man declared in his, in Skeletor’s mind, usual overdramatic flair. “You may have fooled She-Ra before, but she saw the light in the end. The Power of the Elders is safe and out of your grasp. Might as well go crawling back to Snake Mountain now while you have the chance.”

“Wait, I want to hit him first,” said She-Ra, turning to He-Man with a pleading look. “Can I hit him, please? Just once. I hate it when people trick me.”

“And yet, people do it all the time,” said Catra snarky. “Seriously, Adora, you are so gullible.”

“AM NOT!” She-Ra whined, stomping her foot like a child.

“Quite the team you’ve got there, He-Man,” said Skeletor tauntingly. “You know, your words this morning actually had an effect on me. I had come this close to giving up on conquering Castle Grayskull after so many years of repeated humiliating defeats. And then this gullible fool fell into my lap.” He pointed to Adora, whose brow twitch irritably. “She actually bought into some absurd story I made up and was more than eager to retrieve the Power of the Elders for me. Old habits die hard, I suppose.”

“And guess what: you failed,” said Catra mockingly. She started spinning the crystal orb on her index finger, much to He-Man and She-Ra’s apprehension. “We’ve got the power thingy and you’re outnumbered three-to- “

**_BAM!_** Catra was blown off her feet by a sharp burst of magical energy that slammed her squarely in the chest, sending her flying ten feet into the air. The Magicat hit the ground facedown, eyes closed and moaning in pain; the Orb of Power slipped from her fingers and rolled away.

“_Catra!_” She-Ra screamed before turning on Skeletor with a furious glare, his Havoc Staff still smoking.

“You were saying?” said Skeletor mockingly.

She-Ra gnashed her teeth, charging at Skeletor with an outrageous battle cry and her sword held high, not hearing He-Man’s warnings. Skeletor shot another blast from his Havoc Staff, but She-Ra deflected the beam with the flat side of the Sword of Protection, sending it back at him. The overlord of evil sidestepped the beam at the last moment, then leaped into the air when She-Ra took a swipe at him. Up above, Skeletor threw down his Havoc Staff and smashed the ground near She-Ra’s feet, creating a magical explosion that knocked the Princess of Power on her back in a daze. She-Ra blinked the stars out of her eyes as Skeletor came down on top of her with his own sword pointed at her chest. She-Ra reflexively shifted the Swords of Protection into its shield form and braced herself as Skeletor’s sword clashed against the golden surface; She-Ra flinched on impact and felt herself sink slightly into the ground.

Skeletor started to raise his sword for a second strike when He-Man suddenly charged in and tackled him away from his sister. The skull-faced sorcerer hit the ground on his side, but immediately rolled to his feet and faced He-Man, eyeholes flaring red. He-Man took several slow steps sideways, distancing himself from She-Ra while she pulled herself together. Archenemies caught each other’s gaze in a classic stare down…when Skeletor’s body flared with magic, which he released with a swing of his sword, creating a staggering shockwave.

He-Man leaped out of the way as the shockwave cut a path through the ground, breaking off a large chunk of stone from the cliffs behind them and dropping it into the abyss. He looked around for a moment, relieved to see that She-Ra had thrown herself out of the way before the blast had reached her. When he turned back toward Skeletor, the skull-faced villain had closed the distance between them and swung his sword from above. He-Man just barely managed to raise his own sword in time to block the attack, nearly staggering.

“You shouldn’t let yourself get distracted, He-Man,” said Skeletor. “It could cost you dearly….”

While He-Man started to push back, Skeletor’s attention, however, was focused on the Havoc Staff still lodged in the ground behind He-Man. His eyes flared at his discarded weapon and the Havoc Staff shudder before it ripped itself free from the dirt, hovering in the air unaided. The ram-skulled head turned toward He-Man’s exposed back. The Havoc Staff released a burst of magical energy at He-Man, who only realized what was happening when the staff took its shot. Luckily, She-Ra slid in between them and raised her Shield of Protection to deflect the beam into the nearby forest (and startle a nest of angry squirrels.)

“I’ve got your back, bro!” She-Ra declared proudly.

“Thanks for the backup, sis,” He-Man said, smiling. That smile disappeared as He-Man returned to Skeletor. “As for you….”

He-Man twirled his sword around, carrying Skeletor’s blade with it, until he successfully forced the weapon out of his archenemies hand, sending it flying to the opposite end of the battlefield. With his opponent disarmed, He-Man threw a very solid punch at Skeletor’s skull, throwing him down and sending him sliding across the ground until he reached the edge of the forest. Skeletor didn’t stay down for long, already flipping around to his hands and knees before rising up to his feet; a testament to how powerful the overlord of evil truly was. He-Man and She-Ra stood back to back; the Strongest Man in the Universe facing down Skeletor while the Princess of Power keeping a suspicious eye on the floating Havoc Staff.

“Last chance, Skeletor,” said He-Man firmly. “Surrender.”

“And how many times has that actually worked, He-Man?” said Skeletor exasperatedly.

“You just admitted you almost gave up this morning,” He-Man reminded him smugly.

Skeletor went dangerously silent after that; must have touched a nerve, He-Man thought.

The Master of Evil held out his hand; the Havoc Staff flew over He-Man and She-Ra’s heads into his waiting palm. He then turned his sight to his sword that had been discarded, remotely levitating the weapon. He-Man and She-Ra watched as Skeletor’s sword separated into its two halves and started spinning in place like a pair of buzz saws.

“You have got to be kidding me,” She-Ra complained.

“Look out!” He-Man warned.

The spinning swords threw themselves at the heroes, one shooting towards each. While She-Ra rolled out of the way, staring wide-eyed as the blade cleaved a lengthy scar across the ground, He-Man stood his ground and blocked the sword. It felt like Skeletor’s sword was being pushed down with incredible weight despite no one holding on to it. The sword half pulled back and started swinging wildly through the air, all of which He-Man was barely able to deflect, knowing he was slowly being pushed back. At the same time, She-Ra was pinned into place, forced to kneel on the ground while using the Shield of Protection as cover as Skeletor’s sword attacked her from all directions. She wasn’t fast enough to react to the sword swings like He-Man – the best she could do at the moment was buckle down and wait for a chance to counterattack.

But while the heroes were distracted, Skeletor casually strolled away from the battle and went for his real goal: the Orb of Power. Halfway to his target, he felt a pressure on his ankle. Skeletor looked down, annoyance obvious when he found Catra on the ground, battered and bruised, but was grabbing him defiantly with one claw. Skeletor tried shaking her off, but she stubbornly held on.

“Release me, you filthy housecat,” said Skeletor irritably, shaking his leg again. “Get – off!”

“Not happening, bone face,” growled Catra. “It sucks – and I mean, it really sucks – but one of the things about being a good guy is that you’re not allowed to give up without a fight. So if you want to get that crystal thingy, you’re going to have to pry it from my – GAH!” She cried out as Skeletor stomped his other foot on Catra’s back.

“Spare me the dramatics, fleabag,” hissed Skeletor, stomping again harder, making the Magicat cry out.

She-Ra heard her lover’s screams and spun around as Skeletor stomped on her for a third time, earning an even louder scream.

“Catra!” she cried. The fear of her fiancé being crushed to death steeled She-Ra’s resolved right then and there.

She-Ra morphed her shield back into its sword form and stood up straight as Skeletor’s sword thrust at her again, leaving herself wide open. She bit her tongue when the sword speared through her shoulder all the way to the hilt. She could feel the sword vibrating, trying to shake loose, but She-Ra grabbed the handle and ripped it out herself with a fearsome roar. She then pivoted toward He-Man, who was caught in a stalemate with Skeletor’s other sword, and threw it at its twin. She-Ra’s aim was impeccable, managing to hit both swords together and knock them out of the air. The twin weapons started to pick themselves up off the ground when He-Man pinned them back down under his boot. He then brought the Sword of Power down on them with all his strength and shattered the steel like glass, rendering them inert.

Skeletor finally pried his foot away from Catra when He-Man and She-Ra started charging across the field, both of them looking extremely angry. He glanced at the Orb of Power; it was too far away to grab before the muscular warriors got to him. He looked down at Catra again and an idea struck him.

Skeletor turned the Havoc Staff on the injured feline, letting the energy build up at its head to let them know he was serious. He-Man and She-Ra grinded their feet to a halt; She-Ra bared her teeth, but dared not move in fear of Catra's safety.

“Let her go, Skeletor!” She-Ra demanded. “It’s us you want!”

“That’s where you’re wrong, She-Ra,” said Skeletor coolly. “The Power of the Elders is what I want. And there it is, just over there,” he gestured to the crystal orb with his chin. “So here’s what’s going to happen. You two are going to stand there like good little heroes while I retrieve the Power and be on my way. If I see either of you so much as twitch any way I don’t like, I’ll turn the cat into a rug.”

“And how do we know you won’t do it anyway?” said He-Man disdainfully.

“Because you don’t have a choice,” said Skeletor, sounding victorious already.

He-Man grimaced, but nonetheless lowered his sword and gestured She-Ra to do the same. The Princess of Power clearly didn’t want to, but one look at Catra convinced her to relent. Skeletor edged over to the Orb of Power, keeping his staff trained on Catra. He bent down to grab it…when something leaped out of the trees and bit down on Skeletor’s arm. The evil overlord cried out in pain, unwillingly dropping his Havoc Staff, and glared furiously at Prince Adam’s timid green tiger, Cringer, who was biting down hard enough to draw blood.

Skeletor backhanded Cringer across the face, throwing the tiger away with a sharp yip, much to He-Man’s fury. Skeletor hissed as the cold air around Castle Grayskull brushed against his wound, but he quickly realized that he had dropped his Havoc Staff and that there was nothing stopping He-Man and She-Ra from beating him down. And just like he expected, the muscular heroes rushed toward him, both looking extremely pissed off.

Skeletor yelled in terror and reached for the Orb of Power again when he was cut off by a laser blast that exploded just inches away from his hand, forcing him to pull back. And if that wasn’t enough, he heard a raging battle cry from above and tilted his skull back to witness Teela suddenly dropping down in front of Skeletor. Teela launched herself at Skeletor the second she landed and smacked him across the skull with her staff, throwing the wicked warrior on the ground near the rest of his fallen Evil Warriors.

While She-Ra ran over to pick up Catra (carrying her bridal style, no less), He-Man made his way over to Teela and Cringer.

“You made it,” said He-Man. “I’m so glad you’re here.”

“You can thank Cringer for that,” said Teela, scratching the green tiger behind the ear, which earned her a rumbling purr. “When he came back to the palace alone, we thought there might you might have been in trouble.”

“But it looks like we were worried for nothing.”

He-Man turned to Man-At-Arms as he lowered his aircraft to the ground nearby; that explained where Teela came from. And he wasn’t alone either: the Masters appeared over the canopy in their own crafts and landed in a row near the edge of the forest, which looked to also include Roboto, Fisto, Buzz-Off, and Sy-Klone, apparently all back from their individual missions. He-Man felt more relieved than he had all day, now that he was surrounded by his friends.

She-Ra and Catra, though, stared at the group oddly.

“Is…that a giant bee person?” said She-Ra strangely. “Why is that guy’s hand bigger than the other? Is that big guy…changing his face? And - what the heck – did that skinny person just stretch his neck out?!”

“And I thought Etheria was full of freaks and weirdo,” Catra commented.

Teela, meanwhile, noticed that tall buff girl with amazing hair carrying the prison that she had lost earlier in the day. She tapped He-Man on the shoulder, gestured to the princess, and said, “Hey, who’s the tall blonde in the unflattering unitard?”

She-Ra picked at her costume self-consciously.

“I’ll explain everything later,” He-Man assured her, then turned around with a heated glare. “But first thing’s first….”

Skeletor pushed himself into a sitting position, shaking his head clear of the daze, and looked around with a startled gasp. In front of him was He-Man, Cringer, Teela, and Man-At-Arms. To his left was half the Masters of the Universe, and to his right were the other half standing side-by-side with She-Ra and Catra. Behind him was his still downed minions and the steep cliffside overlooking the abyss. He was trapped from all sides.

“Come along, Skeletor,” said Man-At-Arms, his cannon aimed at the sorcerer’s head. “There’s a nice comfy cell waiting for you in the Eternian prison.”

Skeletor’s defeat seemed imminent…. But no one noticed the pale-white eyes leering at the gathered warriors from the shadow of the trees, narrowing slightly.

A sickly-gray hand extended into the light, holding a black crystal between their thumb and forefinger. With a little bit of effort, they shattered the crystal and a black haze spewed forth. He-Man was the first to notice something in the corner of his eye and looked around to see the darkness spreading across the field headed toward them. He only had time to yell, “Look out!” before the shadows covered him, She-Ra, Catra, the Masters, Skeletor, and his Evil Warriors in pitch darkness.

The darkness did not hurt them, but it sent an ominous chill down their spines; Catra reacted the worst, her whole body shaking involuntarily, flashes of painful and terrifying memories coming to the forefront of her mind. No one dared make a move, fearing they might accidentally hit one another. He-Man thought he heard something rustling in the darkness, it sounded muffled, like someone had pressed pillows against his ears. He-Man gripped his sword with both hands, expecting a sneak attack from the shadows, but just as quickly as it came, the darkness suddenly rolled away and returned everything to light.

The Heroic Warriors winced from the sudden brightness, taking a moment for their eyes to adjust. He-Man blinked several times to clear his vision before looked across the field and finding that, unsurprisingly, Skeletor and his Evil Warriors were no longer there.

“He got away again,” Teela complained, putting away her staff.

“I’ve never seen Skeletor perform a spell, like that before,” said Man-At-Arms. “I’m surprised he didn’t attack us while were blinded.”

“Wasn’t Skeletor…,” Catra muttered in a low voice. Everyone looked to the Magicat, who was shaking uncontrollably in She-Ra’s arms with wide, unblinking eyes as the Princess of Power tried to comfort her. “It wasn’t Skeletor…. It wasn’t him….”

“Shh…it’s okay,” She-Ra said in a comforting voice, resting Catra’s head against her shoulder. “It’s okay…we’re fine….”

“For now, maybe,” said He-Man. “But Skeletor will be back, and he’ll be even more dangerous than before…. Skeletor,” he turned to Teela and Man-At-Arms with a defeated look, “he…he knows my secret.”

Teela and Man-At-Arms looked rightfully surprised by this information, though the other Masters looked perplexed.

“Uh, what secret?” asked Ram Man. “Is it bad?”

“Very,” said He-Man simply.

“How did he find out?” Teela questioned immediately.

“Er…that might be my fault,” said She-Ra apologetically. “He-Man and I are…kinda similar. I might have…used the power of Grayskull to change right in front of Skeletor, and he was able to piece together everything himself. But in my defense,” she shouted quickly as Teela glared at her furiously, “I didn’t know it was a secret!”

“Of all the irresponsible - !” Teela started yelling until her father pulled her back by the shoulder.

“What’s done is done – there’s nothing we can do about it,” Man-At-Arms said calmly, though his mustache drooped in an obvious frown, looking to He-Man. “So Skeletor knows your secret. What are you going to do now?”

He-Man didn’t answer immediately. He walked over to the discard Orb of Power and picked it up, staring at his reflection in the crystal surface. His brow furrowed in thought as he looked around at his allies – his friends. He searched the Masters of the Universe, Man-At-Arms, She-Ra, and Catra, until his gaze settled on Teela. As the two exchanged meaningful glances, a thought occurred to He-Man.

“I know what I _want _to do,” said He-Man. “But the decision isn’t mine to make alone….”

He Faced Castle Grayskull and spotted the Sorceress standing at the threshold of one of the castle’s eyes. The two of them stared for a long moment before the Sorceress walked back inside, knowing that He-Man would come looking for her in a few moments. They have much to discuss….

* * *

Eternos was alive with activity hours later when He-Man returned to the palace with the Masters alongside the mysterious cat girl that ruined the queen’s gardens and a tall blonde woman wearing a funny unitard (making She-Ra feel self-conscious again). It was very rare that He-Man ever appeared in Eternos when they weren’t under attack; most of the palace guards had never seen the Man of Power in person before and were buzzing around like a swarm of bees.

King Randor and Queen Marlena were already seated upon their thrones at the head of the chamber when He-Man and She-Ra walked through the double doors side-by-side; She-Ra looked around the palace like a curious child, much to He-Man’s amusement. The Masters of the Universe were lined up in two rows leading to the king and queen, their hands folded behind and their backs straight that reminded She-Ra of the soldiers back in the Fright Zone. Except for Catra, who deviated herself to the background, leaning against the wall with her arms folded across her chest.

He-Man kneeled at the bottom of the small stairs leading to the thrones; She-Ra sputtered for a moment before following his example, almost tripping over her own two feet. King Randor found the display humorous.

“He-Man, it is good to see you again, my friend,” said Randor pleasantly. “It’s not often we see you in the palace.”

“It always a pleasure, your majesty,” said He-Man formally. “I just wish this visit was under better circumstances.”

Randor frowned at his words and asked, “Is something wrong?”

“I’m afraid that Skeletor has learned a dangerous secret,” said He-Man, “one that I have been guarding for four years. Now I’m afraid that it might change the course of our ongoing battle against Skeletor’s forces.”

“That is very troubling news,” said Randor. “Is there anything we can do?”

“No, but there is something I can do,” said He-Man. “I have sought counsel with the Sorceress of Castle Grayskull and we came to an agreement. If Skeletor knows my secret…then the only safe course is for me to tell you as well.”

“He-Man, you really don’t – “ Randor started.

“I do,” He-Man interrupted him with a firm tone. “The only way we’ll be able to fend off Skeletor’s terror is by standing together as one. No more lies, no more secrets. Everyone here has risked their lives battling the forces of evil. They deserve to know the truth. And, more importantly, you deserve to know.”

He-Man rose to his feet, cast one last look to Teela and Man-At-Arms, who nodded supportively, and raised his Sword of Power to the ceiling. A flash of sharp light caused everyone to raise their arms and look away before the radiance faded away. Everyone, save for Teela and Man-At-Arms, were taken aback when they saw Prince Adam where He-Man had been standing seconds ago, holding up his sword in the same position. Adam lowered his sword, scratching the back of his head and smiling sheepishly up at his parents.

“Mother, father um…I’m He-Man,” said Adam lamely. "Surprise...."

Randor and his queen held strange, neutral expressions as looked at each other, as if silently communicating. Then, they rose together in an oddly calm fashion, walking down the steps hand-in-hand, until they were standing in front of their son. Adam was a little apprehensive; he was expecting a much bigger reaction than what he was getting. Just when he thought it couldn’t get any weirder, Randor set a hand on Adam’s shoulder, smiled at him proudly, and said, “We already know.”

Okay, that was the last thing he was expecting to hear.

“You…you know?” Adam sputtered wildly, looking between his parents. “You knew?”

“Adam, we’re your parents,” said Marlena with an amused tone. “You can’t keep secrets from us.”

“You think we wouldn’t have noticed how you keep disappearing whenever He-Man was needed?” said Randor, grinning. “Especially after our little adventure in Subternia. I knew you had something to do with He-Man, but I didn’t know what it was until a couple years ago when I saw that scar on your chest when you were changing after a sparring session with Teela and thought no one was looking.” He tapped on Adam’s shirt where the “X”-shaped mark on his chest would be. “I knew He-Man had been injured in a battle against Hordak, and when I saw your scar, I knew you and He-Man were one and the same.”

"And, of course, you're father can't keep hide anything from me," said Marlena, grinning.

"No, I cannot," said Randor, chuckling.

“If you knew, then why didn’t you say anything?” asked Adam.

“We knew you had your reasons for keeping it a secret,” said Marlena understandingly. “So we chose not to say anything.”

“We decided that if you ever wanted to tell us, we would be here for you,” said Randor, clapping his son good-naturedly. “I know I don’t say it enough, Adam, but we are proud of the man you have become. You will make a fine king someday.”

“W-wow, uh, thanks,” said Adam embarrassingly. He looked to the side at She-Ra, who was still kneeling on the floor, looking up at him hopefully. “Uh, mother, father, there’s one more secret I need to tell you. And it’s a doozy.”

Now her parents looked curious as he expected them to be.

Adam offered his hand to She-Ra, who accepted it and rose to her feet. The Princess of Power was a little hesitant as she looked over Randor and Marlena, who were eyeing the strangely dressed woman in scrutiny. Adam squeezed She-Ra’s hand, silently telling her that he would support her, and her uncertainty instantly vanished. She-Ra raised the Sword of Protection to the air and, just like He-Man, exploded in a ripple of light. When it passed, Adora stood in her place, shuffling her feet nervously as the king and queen – her parents – looked her over. Adora was grateful that Adam spoke up for her, because she wasn’t sure if her voice could work right now.

“Mother, father, this is Adora,” Adam introduced her. “She is…my sister…your daughter….”

Murmurs broke out between the Masters. Oh, right, Adam remembered, most people didn’t know that Adam had a sister. This must come as a shock to them as much as it does for the king and queen. Speaking of whom, both of Adam’s parents wore expressions of disbelief as they looked between him and Adora. They couldn’t deny the resemblance – Adam and Adora were essentially mirrors of each other with the only difference being their gender. Finally, Randor spoke up:

“Adam, we just talked about your sister this morning. How can you tell – “

“The Sorceress of Grayskull,” Adam said resolutely. “She used her magic to see into Adora’s past. It’s her, father. My sister that was taken from us when she was only a baby. She’s back, father. My sister is back.”

“But how is this even – “

Randor was cut off from whatever he was going to say when Marlena put a hand on his chest to hold him back while staring open-mouthed at Adora. The queen treaded forward quietly, coming up to Adora and taking the young woman’s face into her hands without warning. Adora didn’t fight her, instead allowing the queen – her mother – to gaze deeply into Adora’s grayish-blue eyes. Adora didn’t know what she was looking for, but whatever it was made Marlena cover her mouth with her hands, suppressing a quivering gasp, and her eyes begin to water. When Marlena removed her hands, a soft, watery smile crossed her beautiful face.

“It’s her, Randor…,” Marlena spoke with a shudder. Adora let out a surprised yip when Marlena threw herself forward and wrapped her in a strong embrace. “I could never forget about those beautiful eyes. It’s her, Randor…. Our baby girl has come home….”

Randor was scratching his head, still lost and confused about everything. But the King of Eternia simply shook his head and smiled as he approached his wife and Adora.

“I still don’t know what’s going on,” Randor admitted when Marlena and Adora separated, “but if there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s to always trust my queen’s judgment. If she truly believes that you are our daughter, then that’s good enough for me.”

Adora was doubly surprised when the King of Eternia bended forward (he’s as tall as She-Ra, Adora thought) and wrapped her in his powerful arms, firm yet gentle. Adora allowed the strange new sensation to wash over her. It was different from hugs with Glimmer or Bow or even Catra. It made her feel…safe and secure, like she didn’t need to be strong for someone else for a change. This must be the power of parents, Adora thought as she leaned further into her father’s arms.

Adam crossed his arms and smile proudly as he watched the scene.

“Welcome home, Adora.”

* * *

Meanwhile, back at the throne room of Snake Mountain, the shadow that had blotted out the grounds of Castle Grayskull rolled across the chamber like a living cloud, dropping the Evil Warriors unceremoniously on the ground, groaning and whining as they finally picked themselves up. The shadow passed over the high throne and deposited Skeletor in its seat with his Havoc Staff clutched in his hand. The Overlord of Evil looked around, taken by surprise to find himself perfectly safe in his own fortress when he had been surrounded by his enemies only moments ago.

“What happened? Where are we?” said Skeletor skeptically, taking in his surroundings. “Back in Snake Mountain? How can this be?”

“With a little bit of magic, my lord,” a bone-chilling, echoey voice carried across the chamber.

Skeletor and his Evil Warriors directed their attention to the shadows in the corner of the room. Something – or more precisely, someone – appeared from the darkness as if they had just melted into existence. A strange woman Skeletor had never seen before, garbed in a sorceress’s robe of deep-red colors with a rounded mask to match, her skin tinged a sickly-gray color and her long black hair rippled behind her like a living shadow. Skeletor could sense magic within the woman, but it was weak and fragile, not even close to the same level as Evil-Lyn or himself.

“Are you responsible for bringing me here?” Skeletor asked her calmly, taking a guarded interest in the woman.

“Of course, my lord,” the masked woman answered with a polite bow. “I saw that you were in need of assistance, so I offered my services to help, though not without a cost. A little bit of magic powder from the Banther Trees in the Evergreen Forest combined with a black crystal harvested from the mines of Subternia. Both items are difficult to procure, but they allow one to take the form of a living shadow, becoming essentially widespread and untouchable, if only temporary.”

“Hmm…I never would have thought of mixing those two items,” Skeletor hummed, caressing his jaw thoughtfully. “They are useless on their own, but put together…brilliant….”

“I’m glad that you are pleased with my work, my lord,” said the masked woman.

“Very pleased indeed,” said Skeletor. “Tell me, to whom do I owe for this…timely rescue?”

“I am called…Shadow Weaver.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, we all knew it would happen, but Season 4 has officially turned this into an AU story, especially with Horde Prime being more of a…calm and collected sadist than the tyrannical overlord I was expected, but I won’t let stop me. While most of the first half of the season left a lot to be desired, the pay off in the second half was well worth it. Double Trouble (that magnificent…person? Thing?) told Catra exactly what she needed to hear, no matter how painful it is. The ending was devastating for both sides, but I have never been more hopeful that I have been now that things will finally start to get better for our favorite wildcat. Finally, FINALLY, she can start down the path of redemption alongside her reluctant ally hopefully turned friend, Queen Sparkles!
> 
> In the next chapter, the girls adjust to life on Eternia and a clash of interests begins to unfold. Meanwhile, Skeletor tests the waters of his new alliance with Shadow Weaver and take their first step towards their newest scheme.


	5. The More Things Change

Adam had to fight back the urge to laugh at his sister, who was staring open-mouthed around the admittedly grandiose corridors like a little kid in a toy shop. To be fair, Adam had grown up in Eternos his entire life. He was used to the finely chiseled statues that loomed in the cavernous alcoves and the beautiful artwork meticulously etched into the walls. But Adora never knew any of this before. She never even knew _Eternia _existed until recently. Just like Adam didn’t know his own sister existed until yesterday.

That, Adora decided, needed to change right away.

After coming home from their epic battle against Skeletor and the big reveal of He-Man and She-Ra, Adora had insisted on a sleepover, which is something Adam hadn’t done since he and Teela were kids and was more than happy to indulge his twin. They and Catra (who Adam had taken an immediate liking to when she told how she escaped the palace without Teela ever realizing it) spent the whole night sharing stories. Adora learned a great deal about her brother’s life growing up, the pressure of one day becoming king of Eternia and the great weight of responsibility that came with it, along with the constant stress of keeping his identity as He-Man a secret from his loved ones. And Adam learned that Adora and Catra’s relationship was…honestly, complicated was putting it mildly. By the end of the story, Adam was honestly dumbfounded how these two even managed to form a stable relationship, let alone get engaged.

When Adam woke up the next morning (having been forced to camp out on the cold, hard floor while the girls curled up on the bed), Adora was already up and going through her morning routine with vigor. Apparently growing up in a military state had drilled a pathological need to be up at the crack of dawn; a trait Catra did not share and caused her to throw her headpiece at her fiancé’s head for being too loud. As for why Adora was so energetic this morning, Adam had promised to give her a tour of his home – their home – and Adora wanted to start right away, ignoring her twin’s sleepiness. So, after stealing a few jelly tarts from the castle kitchens, Adam started showing her around the place.

“Well, we’ve been to the throne room, the weapons room, the meeting room, the reading room, the magic room, the war room, the treasure room, the powder room, and the bathrooms,” said Adam, counting off with his fingers. “Man-At-Arms lab is off-limits after the recent attacks and for obvious reasons, we’re not going down to the Eternian prison. But overall, what do you think?”

“This place is _amazing_!” Adora all but yelled in awe, craning her head all the way back to the high ceiling above. “I don’t think even Bright Moon is this big!”

“Eh, it’s a little much,” Adam said humbly, shrugging his shoulders. “Honestly, I don’t think I’ve even been seen every room in the palace, and I’ve lived here my whole life. Kinda wonder why we even need all these rooms – most of them are just empty space.”

“Yeah, it does fill kind of empty,” Adora admitted sheepishly. “And it could use a little color. It’s a little…uh….”

“Plain?” Adam offered.

“You said it, not me,” Adora said quickly with a teasing smirk.

“I get the feeling that the palace is gonna start livening up when we find the other princesses,” said Adam.

“Speaking of…,” Adora mumbled, her tone laced with concern. “Have you found out what happened to the rest of the Princess Alliance?”

“No, but Man-At-Arms is looking into it,” Adam responded. “We know that they were scattered across Eternia in balls of light after Etheria returned to this dimension. Catra smashed a hole in our mother’s garden and you ended up crash-landing at Snake Mountain. The Masters are keeping an eye out for anyone who might match the descriptions you gave us, but Eternia is a pretty big place. And if any of them landed in the Dark Hemisphere, there’s no guarantee that we’ll know about it since that’s outside the Eternian Council’s domain.”

“If something happens to them, it’ll be all my fault,” said Adora quietly.

“No, it won’t,” said Adam firmly. “Catra warned me you had a habit of putting the weight of the world on your shoulders. Adora, you didn’t activate the portal on your own. _All_ of the princesses _chose_ to go through with it. Sure, thing’s didn’t go as planned, but that’s not your fault, so don’t go blaming yourself.” When Adora didn’t seem convinced, an idea came to him. “C’mon, I know what you need right now.”

Adam snatched his twin’s hand and pulled her down the corridor, making her stumble before she caught herself. Adora didn’t have a chance to ask where they were going before Adam pulled them around the corner and dashed outside to the palace courtyard. There was a massive crater on the far-left side of the yard where the palace garden once stood (Adora remembered the intense glare Queen Marlena gave Catra when she received the news) and intimidating statues the size of Bright Moon’s towers stood on archways around the borders. But what Adam wanted to show her was the various platforms and equipment scattered around the courtyard made of solid orange light where several of the Masters were in the middle of an intense workout.

Teela gracefully leaped back and forth between two hard light walls, ascending all the way to the top, then dived through three light rings without touching the edges and rolling onto another platform before heading to the next obstacle. Man-E-Faces was in his robotic appearance (Man-E-Robot as the other Masters unimaginatively called him) was shooting a dozen targets flying at blinding speeds with incredible accuracy that would make Bow swoon. Ram Man smashed his way through at least twenty walls using his head without stopping, nearly running into Mekaneck, who was stretching his namesake through a labyrinth of holographic pipes looking for the exit. Man-At-Arms was standing on the sidelines of the entire session, coordinating all the obstacles with his digital tablet.

“You’re falling behind, teela!” Man-At-Arms called out. “You won’t be breaking any records at this rate! Man-E, I’m increasing the speed by one-point-six percent! Ram Man, be mindful of your surroundings; you almost hit Mekaneck! And where is Stratos? He was supposed to report to morning training ten minutes ago!”

“Whoa…,” said Adora in awe, going starry-eyed. “Look at them go. No one in the Princess Alliance ever wants to do morning training with me.”

“Figured this would be something you liked,” said Adam, shaking his head amusingly. “C’mon, I wanna introduce you to everyone.”

He took Adora’s hand again and tugged her to the center of the courtyard; Adora felt nostalgic for her childhood in the Fright Zone as she watched the Masters workout. Man-At-Arms took his attention away from the digital tablet when he noticed the twins approaching, his mustache twitching a little at the princess’s awestruck expression.

“Prince Adam, Princess Adora, I’m surprised to see you both up so early,” said Man-At-Arms. “Usually Adam tries to sleep in till lunch unless Teela drags him out for training.”

“Hey, I’m not that bad,” Adam complained playfully. “Adora, this is Man-At-Arms, leader of the Masters and general of Eternia’s armies. He’s also one of my closest friends.”

“It’s a pleasure to finally meet you, Princess Adora,” said Man-At-Arms politely, shaking hands with the young woman. “We didn’t get a chance to talk after everything that happened yesterday between Skeletor’s attack on Castle Grayskull and your um…revelation.”

“Please, call me Adora,” said Adora shyly. “I…don’t really like it when people call me princess, even when I was in the Rebellion. Horde conditioning, I guess.”

“All right, but only if you call me Duncan,” said Man-At-Arms with a kindly smile. “I’ve worked with your father for many years, ever since we were cadets. He’s one of the greatest men I’ve ever known. I see a lot of him in you two.”

“Thanks,” said Adora, flushing at his praise. “Speaking of which, where are mom and dad? I haven’t seen them since yesterday.”

“Unfortunately, the king and queen needed to attend an emergency summit of the Eternian Council,” Man-At-Arms answered. “Having a new planet appear over Eternia has made a lot of people anxious since they don’t know anything about Etheria or its people. Randor and Marlena are meeting with the others leaders to tell them what we’ve learned, including yours and Adam’s identities as He-Man and She-Ra. There’s no point in hiding it from our allies now that Skeletor knows your secret. And hopefully, the other kingdoms will be able to keep an eye out for the other Princesses. Don’t worry, we are making it our priority to find them before Skeletor or anyone else does first,” he added to reassure Adora.

“Father, aren’t you going to introduce us,” said Teela as she approached from behind, having ended her training session with the other Masters, “or are you planning on hogging the new girl for yourself?”

“This impatient young woman is my daughter, Teela,” Man-At-Arms introduced.

“Nice to meet you,” said Adora, shaking Teela’s hand enthusiastically. “I saw you during the battle against Skeletor.” There was a moment where Adora’s eyes lingered on her muscles a little longer than they should have. “You look really strong….”

“Thank you for noticing,” Teela accepted, smirking. “So you’re She-Ra, huh? I have to know: what’s with the unitard?”

“It’s not like I chose it!” Adora screeched, face going red. “It just came with the sword!”

“Moving on,” Man-At-Arms decided to cut in, gesturing to the three men on her left. “These are our fellow Masters. The big guy is our resident one-man wrecking crew, Ram Man. The one with the many faces is, well, Man-E-Faces – a little on the nose, I know. And last, but certainly not least, is Mekaneck.”

“Adam told us about how you took on Skeletor’s goons in Snake Mountain all by yourself,” said Ram Man, slapping Adora playfully on the shoulder, which nearly made her fall over. “You’re all right in my book, kid.”

“Well, I didn’t exactly beat them, but I got in a few good hits,” said Adora humbly.

“It must have been pretty scary, waking up in a foreign world, surrounded by Skeletor’s creeps,” said Man-E-Faces, suddenly switching from his human face to robot mode. “**But it’s all right now – you are among friends**.” He alternated to his monster face, snarling. “_Anyone that wants to get to you will have to go through us._”

“And if you have any questions,” said Mekaneck, stretching his namesake to get up close with Adora, “feel free to ask.”

“I have a question,” said Adora, blinking owlishly at him. “Is your power really just stretching your neck?”

“W-What?” Mekaneck sputtered, retracting himself. “Pfft, no, of course not, I – yes, yes, it is,” he concluded, hanging his head shamefully.

“I would introduce you to the other Masters, but most of them had to be sent away on missions following Etheria’s appearance,” said Man-At-Arms, who stroke his chin thoughtfully. “Except for Stratos. He never showed up for morning training. I wonder what happened to him?”

Only seconds after the question was asked, something slapped on the ground beside them, making Adam, Adora, and the Masters jump, their weapons drawn ready for combat. It was Stratos, lying facedown on the ground; his wings ruffled and covered in scratch marks, a small plume of loose feather fluttering after him. Before the panic could set in, Catra suddenly dropped out of the air and landed on all-fours on Stratos’s back. The Magicat's eyes were wide with excitement, her toothy grin stretched from ear-to-ear, and her tail whipped back and forth. She looked like a kitten who just got a new toy.

“Adora, look at this huge bird I caught!” Catra shouted, practically buzzing.

“Uh, Catra?” Adam said awkwardly while Ram Man and Mekaneck snickered off to the side. “That’s Stratos. He’s our friend. You can’t eat him.”

“…oh,” Catra mumbled, her ear dropping disappointedly.

Stratos weakly raised his head, trying valiantly to reach out for his fellow Masters, saying “Help…me…” before falling unconscious.

* * *

Skeletor was in a very somber mood. No surprise to anyone considering his most recent defeat at the hands of He-Man and his newest allies when it had been the closest he had ever come to obtaining the Power of the Elders. But no, the source of his ill-temper was the woman kneeling before him.

Seated upon his throne in the heart of Snake Mountain, his Evil Warriors lined up on his left side, Skeletor peered down at the masked wench that had dared to enter his domain without his permission. He could sense magic on her – a sorceress, no doubt – but it was weak, like a child. Skeletor normally wouldn’t entertain the though of granting such a pathetic creature an audience, but Skeletor could not forget how it was she who rescued him when they were on the cusp of defeat against He-Man and Masters. What she lacked in power, she made up for with her unorthodox knowledge of the mystic arts. Knowledge that _could _prove useful to him.

Time to find out her worth.

“So…Shadow Weaver, was it?” Skeletor spoke in a low, creaking voice. “You intrude upon my domain unannounced, spying on me and my men for months – which I do not appreciate, by the way – and now you offer to serve me? Well, it’s not going to be that easy. I don’t let just _anyone _join my Evil Warriors.” He paused briefly, glancing at his men sideways. “Well, not anymore, at least.”

“I can understand your caution, my lord,” said Shadow Weaver silkily. “It’s not easy to trust someone you hardly know. After all, you have been betrayed in the past. By Kobra Khan and Evil-Lyn – “

“Don’t you dare say that traitor’s name!” Skeletor snarled, his eyes flaring.

“Apologies, my lord, I overstepped myself,” said Shadow Weaver calmly with her head bowed. “While you have no reason to trust me, I believe I could be a valuable asset to you and your…underlings,” she added with a sideways glance to the Evil Warriors, all of whom looked deeply annoyed.

“You were slightly useful during the battle at Castle Grayskull,” said Skeletor, “but your magic is pitiful. Even Randor’s spawn possess more magical potential than you. How could you be of any value to me with such insignificant power?”

“I wasn’t always this weak,” said Shadow Weaver, her voice showing the slightest tinge of anger. “Many have gotten in my way and diminish my strength; Catra being the most prominent among them. That nuisance destroyed my power.”

“So that’s why you are eager to join me,” said Skeletor, resting his head in his hand. “You’re not really interested in aiding my cause. You’re just a scorned old hag thirsty for revenge and willing to cling to my power like a parasite to obtain it. Such a pathetic creature, you are….”

“You are truly all-knowing, my lord,” said Shadow Weaver coolly. “Adora and Catra…I took them in when no one else would. I loved them as if they were my own children. And how do they repay me? Adora, after all I had done to see her succeed, threw everything away to go running off with a bunch of wide-eyed children. And Catra, whom I had raised to be strong and self-sufficient, betrayed me and left me to rot away in prison. I've done so much for those children, and they act like _I’m _the villain!”

“I get the feeling they were right,” Skeletor spoke in an uncaring tone. “But I don’t want to hear about your pitiful sob story. I want to hear how you can provide _anything _of value to our organization since you clearly have nothing to offer in the way of magic or power.”

“One thing I’ve learned in the Horde is that information _is _power,” said Shadow Weaver smoothly. “And _that_ I have plenty of. Not just on Adora and Catra, but also of Etheria and, more importantly, the Princesses.”

“Princesses?” said Skeletor, who likely would have raised an eyebrow if he had one. “You mean blissfully ignorant young woman of nobility who would spend all their time on fancy dresses and parties? How are they of any relevance?”

“The term for Princess is different on Etheria than it is on your world,” Shadow Weaver explained. “While it is true the Princesses are rulers of their kingdoms, it is mostly a title for young women who are born with…gifts. Magical gifts. Some can harness the power of nature, some can bend the raging seas to their will, some can summon storms of ice with a wave of their hand, and some can call upon the power of the sun itself. Adora and Catra are Princesses, and they are not the only ones to arrive on Eternia.”

“Those flashes of light…,” said Skeletor thoughtfully.

“The other Princesses, scattered across Eternia,” said Shadow Weaver. “Adora, the selfless fool that she is, will be looking for them. And now that she has the ear of the King Randor, it will only be a matter of time before they are found. And when the Princesses join forces with the Masters….”

“We will be outnumbered…overpowered…,” Skeletor muttered softly. “The Masters could destroy us at any time of their choosing….”

“Precisely,” Shadow Weaver breathed; her eyes narrowed is a sort of satisfied expression.

“…and I suppose you have a plan for dealing with this,” said Skeletor, leering at the sorceress.

“I do,” said Shadow Weaver, sounding incredibly smug. “But before I go into any details, I am going to need something in return.”

“How dare you make demands of Lord Skele – “ Tri-Klops began before he was blasted into the wall by Skeletor’s Havoc Staff.

“…you were saying?” Skeletor spoke slowly and cautiously.

“My power is…frail, as you have so…graciously pointed out, my lord,” Shadow Weaver said, choosing her words carefully. “In my current state, I am of no use to you in any greater sense beyond whatever information I can provide. But in the eight months that I have been trapped on this world, I have learned of a way to regain my lost power and I…humbly request your assistance in obtaining it, my lord,” she concluded with a deep bow.

“Now you’ve piqued my interest,” said Skeletor, leaning forward. “And what, might I ask, could you be searching for?”

“The Crystal of the Crimson Countess,” Shadow Weaver answered simply.

“The Crimson Countess is just a myth, like Mumm-Ra,” Skeletor scoffed. “You want us to go looking for fairy tales?”

“You of all people, my lord, should know that myths and legends are born from truth,” said Shadow Weaver. “I have spent many painstaking months of research, scrounging around for any detail I could find on the legend, but I believe I have finally located the Crimson Countess’s magical gem. All I ask is that you allow me to borrow your Evil Warriors so that I may retrieve it. With your permission, my lord.”

“Hey, you can’t just – “ Trap Jaw was also blasted into the wall before he could finish.

“Hmm…,” Skeletor hummed aloud, stroking his bony chin. “Very well. You may take my Evil Warriors to retrieve the crystal. They will carry out your every order…whether they like it or not…,” he added toward the Evil Warriors, leering at them with glowing eye sockets.

“As you command, Lord Skeletor,” said Tri-Klops obediently, though he and the others were clearly unhappy to be taking orders from the newcomer.

“You are most generous, my lord,” said Shadow Weaver, no doubt smirking under her mask.

“A word of caution before you go,” Skeletor said before Shadow Weaver turned to leave. “Do not even entertain the notion of betraying me, Shadow Weaver…. You do not want to make an enemy of me.”

“Perish the thought, my lord,” said Shadow Weaver. “We will return with the crystal in tow. I promise.”

“Then go!” Skeletor hissed, waving his Havoc Staff in emphasis.

Shadow Weaver bowed at the waist once more, turned on her heels, and walked away with the Evil Warriors, most reluctantly, following behind. Skeletor leaned back into his throne, head in his hands, watching Shadow Weaver’s departing back with great intensity. He didn’t trust her – her description of herself when she spoke of Adora and Catra made that indisputably clear – and likely believed that she was the one manipulating Skeletor. But whether succeeded or failed in her mission, Shadow Weaver was going to learn very soon that you can’t manipulate a master manipulator.

* * *

The clang of clashing metal rang out across the courtyard as Adora slammed the Sword of Protection against Teela’s staff, holding them in place, tingling with excitement

It had been a long time since Adora had a real sparring session with anyone since the Princesses didn’t see the point in training when they had magic and the Bright Moon guards stopped working with her after she whooped them all simultaneously in her first week of the Rebellion. Catra was the only person who could give Adora a run for her money, but after the war ended, she was either too busy with princess lessons or just plain lazy. She was really glad she met someone like Teela who could give her a real challenge and was a willing sparring partner. And it definitely wasn’t because she liked looking at Teela’s muscles – nope, definitely not!

“You need to widen your stance, Adora!” Man-At-Arms called out, watching the match from the sidelines with Adam, Catra, and the other Masters (a bandaged Stratos was sitting on the opposite side of Catra, casting her weary glances). “You have to plant yourself firmly on the ground or your opponent could take out your legs!”

“Kinda like this,” said Teela teasingly.

Quick as a flash, Teela pulled back, letting Adora stumble forward, then stooped low to knock the Princess of Power off balance with a leg sweep. Adora yelped as she felt her feet leave the ground and her back hit the concrete before connecting with the back of her head; Adora whined and rolled into a fetal position, holding the sore spot. Adam winced and hissed, but looked mildly amused; the Masters were chuckling softly while Man-At-Arms shook his head; Catra was cackling full-out. Teela practically strutted around to Adora’s side, hands on her hips with a smug smile, the Princess of Power staring up at her with a grimace.

“That makes my four wins to your – how many is it? – Zero?” said Teela condescendingly.

“It’s not a competition, Teela,” said Man-At-Arms disapprovingly.

“Well, if it was, I’d be winning,” said Teela cockily.

“Yeah, well, you’re just lucky I don’t go all She-Ra on you,” said Adora, sitting up and pouting. “Then I would totally have your – “

“**_Adora, please hear me!_**”

“Who said that?” Adora shrieked with a start, looking around the courtyard wildly.

“Uh…nobody said anything,” said Mekaneck slowly, looking to Man-E-Faces, who shrugged his shoulders.

“**_Adora, you must come to Castle Grayskull immediately! It is urgent!_**”

“There it is again!” Adora yelled fearfully. “I’m hearing voices in my head!”

“Great, Adora’s brain is damaged – again,” Catra groaned, rolling her eyes in annoyance.

“No, I hear it, too,” said Adam, looking up at the sky with a serious expression. “It’s the Sorceress. She wants me and Adora at Castle Grayskull right away.”

“Sounds like there’s trouble brewing,” said Man-At-Arms. “No doubt Skeletor’s back in top form after his little disappearing act yesterday.”

“Aw, doesn’t that guy ever take a holiday?” Ram Man complained.

“Adora and I will head on over to Castle Grayskull,” said Adam, walking over and helping his twin to her feet. “We’ll radio you when we know what’s going on. C’mon, sis!”

And then Adam ran off. Adora started to follow, but stopped for a moment and turned to Teela. She gave the captain of the guard a look that said ‘This is over’; Teela merely smirked and gestured her to 'bring it on'. Adora groaned irritably before chasing after her brother.

* * *

The Prince and Princess of Eternia arrived at Castle Grayskull within an hour riding Cringer. Adora definitely thought they would have gotten them faster on Swift Wind, but he was a flying unicorn (alicorn? Winged horsey? Whatever.), so she gave Cringer the benefit of the doubt. Adora was so grateful to have Adam leading her through the castle, who seemed to know the layout like the back of his hand. If she had wandered on her own, she would no doubt end up being lost for the rest of her life. Cringer, sensing her anxiety with the place, comforted Adora by rubbing his furry head against her leg. He’s such a good cat – the complete opposite of her fiancé.

Adam took them to a ridiculous massive chamber where the only things that occupied the space was a pair of winding stairs leading to a ornate, sapphire-blue mirror. As the three of them climbed the steps, they found the Sorceress staring at her own reflection, looking deep in thought. She saw Adam, Adora, and Cringer in mirror over her shoulder and turned toward them slowly. Though her expression was neutral like always, Adam noticed that the Sorceress’s wings were folded tightly behind her. That only happened when she was suppressing a great deal of anger; a rare sight but a terrifying one in his opinion.

“It is good that you are both here,” said the Sorceress calmly, looking from Adam to Adora. “How are you feeling, Adora? Are you well? You have gone through such a great ordeal in such a short time.”

“It’s…a little disorienting,” Adora admitted. “But I think I’m getting the hang of things around here.”

“That is good,” said the Sorceress.

“You didn’t summon us just to check up on Adora,” said Adam, getting straight to business. “What’s the emergency?”

“Skeletor has sent his men searching for a dangerous and powerful artifact,” said the Sorceress, turning back to Adam. “A magical gemstone once belonging to the Crimson Countess.”

“But the Crimson Countess is a myth,” said Adam, surprised. “A fairy tale old people like to tell the kids.”

“I am afraid that the Crimson Countess was quite real, Prince Adam,” said the Sorceress.

“Um, excuse me,” Adora piped up, making Adam and the Sorceress turn to her. “Hi, yeah, um, I know I’m the new girl here, but uh…who’s the Crimson Countess?”

The Sorceress didn’t answer right away, but turned to the mystical mirror behind them and summoned a swirling vortex of color on the surface with a wave of her staff. When the colors solidified, they showed the ghastly image of a pale-skinned woman with flowing black hair garbed in skeletal-shaped black and crimson armor, her eyes red like fresh blood and pointed fangs exposed from her upper lip. A crimson band wrapped around her skull, centered with a ruby-red crystal that radiated with mystical power. And behind her was an ominous looming figured draped in a tattered red cloak, their arms withered and wrapped in bandages.

“Long ago, so soon after the demise of King Grayskull and the defeat of King Hiss, the Crimson Countess appeared,” said the Sorceress mysteriously. “She had come to Eternia from parts unknown to conquer it at the behest of her master, Mumm-Ra.”

The mirror showed images like a video, depicting the confident Crimson Countess sitting up a scarlet throne, carried by her soldiers as her armies moved across the lands of Eternia. Her soldiers were no ordinary warriors, but undead thralls with chalk-white bones exposed through rotting flesh, many missing parts of themselves such as their eyes, jaws, or limbs. Adam and Adora watched horrifically as ancient soldiers and villagers tried to fight them off, but their weapons caused no harm and were overwhelmed by the undead swarm. And the whole time, the Crimson Countess cackled atop her throne, reveling in the chaos.

“Learned in the ways of dark magic, the Crimson Countess raised the dead to do her bidding and plunged the world into chaos,” the Sorceress continued unperturbed. “Even Eternia’s mightiest armies could not stave off the Crimson Countess’s evil, and when they fell, she would use her magic to raise her fallen enemies to become her thralls. When the Countess’s army reached the lands of Grayskull, the Council of Elders had sent their champion, King Grayskull’s daughter, the first She-Ra, to face her in battle.”

“But…the King Grayskull’s daughter died in her first battle, right?” Adam asked apprehensively.

“She did,” said the Sorceress mournfully. The mirror behind her showed the scene of the Crimson Countess holding a limp figure by the throat, their once golden hair caked in mud and their white-and-gold clothing riddled with tears, a river of blood dripping from her parted lips. “It was the Crimson Countess who laid the first She-Ra to rest.”

Adora clasped her hands over her mouth to conceal her gasp and Cringer cowered behind her legs. Adam glanced sideways at his sister in worry, but pressed on and asked the Sorceress, “So what happened to her? What does an old legend have to do with what’s happening now?”

“When She-Ra fell, the Crimson Countess made her way to Castle Grayskull, sensing the power that lay hidden within,” the Sorceress answered. “Their champion felled and King Grayskull no longer able to defend his lands, the Elders used their divine power to shield the castle from the Countess’s legion. The Crimson Countess spent many days trying to break through the barrier as the Elders grew weaker with each attempt. It was the darkest of days and all seemed lost….

“That was, until a new champion emerged.”

In the magic mirror, a tall, stalwart warrior appeared over the hillside above the battlefield as the legions of the dead attempted to break down the barriers around Castle Grayskull. He resembled a dark-haired He-Man garbed in a loincloth and an animal skin cape, his head topped with a horned helmet and a necklace of bones around his neck. With a furious war cry, the warrior plowed his way through the sea of the undead, smashing his way through the swarm with his round shield, his mighty battle axe cleaving through the ranks like a hot knife through butter.

“The Sorceress of that age called upon a champion from the far north to defend the realm,” said the Sorceress. “His name was Vikor and he alone stood against the Crimson Countess’s evil. Though greatly outnumbered, Vikor carved a path through the Countess’s thralls and faced the malevolent one herself.”

A fierce battle waged between Vikor and the Crimson Countess; axe and claws clashing, sparks flying through the air; the Crimson Countess appeared enraged by how this meager mortal could somehow match her power. But when Vikor missed a swing aimed for the Countess’s head, the fanged woman slashed his wrist, forcing the warrior to relinquish his weapon off into the distance. The Crimson Countess lunged for Vikor, her fangs exposed and aimed for his neck, but the champion of the north had a surprise. Vikor reached behind and pulled out a wooden stake, which he then drove straight into the Crimson Countess’s chest. The fanged woman let out a piercing shriek before her body suddenly dissolved into a pile of ash; the undead legions withered and decayed into the dirt immediately after their master.

“Armed with a stake whittled from a branch of the Skytree, Vikor had slain the Crimson Countess and ended her reign of terror,” the Sorceress continued. “Though the Crimson Countess was defeated, the threat she presented still lingered.”

Half buried within the ashes, the ruby-red crystal that had once adorned the Crimson Countess’s head still glimmered. Vikor removed the crystal from the ash, staring at the gemstone thoughtfully. When the mirror changed scenes, Adam and Adora could see Vikor standing in an icy cavern with a single ice pedestal in the middle of the room. He hanged the ruby crystal over the pedestal, which somehow floated above unsupported, and Vikor walked away, sealing the chamber behind him.

“The crystal that gave the Crimson Countess her mystical power was too dangerous to be entrusted in the hands of men,” said the Sorceress. “After witnessing the fate that had befallen King Grayskull’s daughter, Vikor did not trust it in the hands of the Council of Elders. So he returned north and found a secluded cavern hidden within the treacherous Ice Mountains. There it would remain for a thousand years.”

“Until Skeletor found it,” said Adam, grimacing.

“It is not Skeletor who seeks the crystal, Prince Adam,” said the Sorceress, turning around to the twins with that look of anger once again. “But rather his newest ally. One that you should know quite well, Adora.”

“Me? Who?” Adora asked curiously.

“Shadow Weaver,” said the Sorceress sharply.

“**_WHAT?!_**” Adora screamed furiously, making Cringer leap with a frightened yowl, seeking cover behind Adam. “How is she still alive?! Horde Prime threw her into the portal - ”

“Which then sent her here, to Eternia,” the Sorceress stated calmly. “She has been lurking in the shadows of the Dark Hemisphere for many months, expanding her magical knowledge and her understanding of Eternia’s ancient secrets. It was she who rescued Skeletor and his Evil Warriors following your victory yesterday. She has convinced Skeletor to lend her the aid of his Evil Warriors so that she may locate the crystal.”

“Catra knew it was her,” Adora realized. “Oh man, Catra…she’s going to be so furious.”

“I get the feeling that you two have history,” Adam said to Adora.

“Shadow Weaver was the closest thing we had to a mother in the Fright Zone,” Adora said through gritted teeth. “If you can call a heartless, abusive witch a mother. She used to punish Catra all the time, even for things she didn’t do, and then she would make me think it was my fault because I wasn’t ‘keeping her in line’, like some kind of pet. She turned me and Catra against each other, just like Light Hope. And then, when she had a falling out with Hordak, she decided to ‘switch sides’ and manipulated my best friend, Glimmer. I don’t think I’ve ever hated anyone more than Shadow Weaver, which is nothing compared to how Catra feels.”

“Then the last thing we need is someone like her getting ahold of a magic crystal,” said Adam seriously, whipping out his Sword of Power. “Time for another He-Man and She-Ra team-up.”

With a look of determination, Adora transformed her bracelet into the Sword of Protection, lifting it into the air with her brother. They shouted their incantations together (“**_By the Power/For the Honor of Grayskull!_**”) and He-Man and She-Ra emerged from the explosion of light. When She-Ra started to leave, He-Man suddenly turned to Cringer, who cowered on the steps as usual. To She-Ra’s astonishment, He-Man pointed his weapon at Cringer and shot the tiger with a bolt of lightning. The cowardly feline suddenly grew three times his normal size, great beastly fangs growing his maw, and a steel helmet and saddle appeared like magic. The vicious sabretooth let out a mighty roar that made the hair on the back of She-Ra’s neck stand on end. That definitely wasn’t the same old Cringer….

“You can turn your pet into a giant beast whenever you want?!” She-Ra yelled shockingly as He-Man climbed on the tiger’s back. “Did you leave me any cool powers?”

“You can change your sword into anything you want,” He-Man reminded her.

“Oh yeah,” said She-Ra, frowning. She transformed Sword of Protection into a bejeweled cup for some reason. “Evildoers beware my Mug of Protection.”

“Just get on,” said He-Man, chuckling. His sister grumbled, but nonetheless climbed into the seat behind He-Man. “Let’s ride, Battle Cat!”

“He even has a cool name?!” She-Ra complained as Battle Cat leapt off the staircase and out of the chamber. “That is so not fair!”

* * *

The Ice Mountains of the great northern region was exactly as it was unimaginatively named for: a long range of mountains covered in ice and snow, not that much different from the Kingdom of Snows on Etheria. And it was in the middle of this frozen wasteland where Shadow Weaver and the Evil Warriors found themselves aimlessly wandering the snow-covered plains.

Despite the subzero temperatures, Shadow Weaver somehow did not require any extra garments and practically glided through the dense snow in only her thin robe; Catra would say it was because she was already a cold…never mind. The Evil Warriors, on the other hand, were bundled up in as many fur cloaks as they could scrounge up and were still shivering as the arctic winds blew harshly against their exposed faces. Trap Jaw had it the worst. Not only were his cybernetics creaking from the bitter chill, but there were plenty of unpleasant memories from the last time he ended up trapped in this region, with one of the Masters no less.

Shadow Weaver suddenly stopped, so the Evil Warriors stopped behind her. The masked woman looked to the left, then to the right, clutching a saucer-like cup in her hands. The cup was filled to the brim with water, which was somehow steaming despite the cold, sprinkled with a dozen colorful flower petals and scarlet powder. The steam wafting from the cup seemed to be floating to the west, even though the blistering winds were blowing to the south. Shadow Weaver turned in that direction and continued walking.

“Bah…are we there yet?” Beast Man whined. “It’s so cold out here.”

“What’re you complaining about?” Tri-Klops snapped irritably. “You’re the one covered in fur.”

“If you two insist on whining like children, then please, feel free to go back,” said Shadow Weaver, her soft voice carrying over the howling winds. “I’m sure Skeletor won’t punish you too severely for returning empty handed.”

Tri-Klops and Beast Man grumbled under their breath, but were still following Shadow Weaver nonetheless. Clawful walked up next to Shadow Weaver and asked, “Duh, how’re we gonna find the uh…missile of the swimming countless anyway? Wasn’t it, like, lost a long time ago, or something?”

“The _Crystal _of the _Crimson Countess_, you mentally deficient crustacean,” Shadow Weaver hissed. “And I thought Force Captain Scorpia was dimwitted…. But to answer your question, the only way to find magic is _with_ magic. Purified spring water from the Isle of Tears combined with petals from the Lockwing flowers from the Banshee Jungle and crystal powder from Subternia create a tracking spell that hones in on highly concentrated sources of magic. And if my research is correct, which it undoubtedly is, there’s only one thing in this frozen wasteland it could be tracking.”

“Blah, blah, blah – magic stuff!” Trap Jaw complained. “Just hurry up and find the stupid thing already! I’m rusting over here!”

There were a few choice words Shadow Weaver had for the cyborg, but she didn’t get a chance to use them when she noticed a change with her tracking spell. The steam was pointed straight up. The masked witch narrowed her eyes thoughtfully then looked down at her feet. She kicked away the snow on the spot and realized that they were standing on a thick slab of ice that obviously had not been formed naturally. Shadow Weaver kneeled down with her tracking spell; the vapors were getting stronger as if the entire cup was evaporating. The shady witch looked quite pleased with herself as she stood up, carelessly throwing away her tracking spell, and turned to the Evil Warriors.

“You’re in luck,” said Shadow Weaver smoothly. “The crystal is in a chamber directly below us…. Well, what are you waiting for? Get to work!”

Grumbling irritably, Trap Jaw alternated his arm to its rifle mode and Tri-Klops rotated his headgear to the green lens, both aiming for the spot that Shadow Weaver pointed out.

* * *

While Shadow Weaver and the Evil Warriors were close to reaching their goal, the heroes were speeding through the perilous blizzard on their way to stop them. The Masters and Catra had all piled in on the only two land vehicles they seemed to have while Stratos flew above, being the only one capable of soaring through the strong winds, and He-Man and She-Ra rode alongside them on Battle Cat. They were all equipped with winter gear – even He-Man and She-ra, who was extremely grateful since the Icy Mountains were somehow colder than the Northern Reach that even her She-Ra form couldn’t maintain her body temperature.

“The Sorceress said the Crystal of the Crimson Countess should be just this ridge!” He-Man shouted over the snowstorm. “Keep an eye out for any of Skeletor’s goons!”

“I can’t say I’m enthusiastic to be back here!” Stratos called, readjusting the angle of his wings.

“What, you didn’t enjoy your little field trip with Trap Jaw?” Mekaneck taunted.

“Can’t say I did!” Stratos replied.

“Stay focused, everyone!” Man-At-Arms said sternly. “We can’t let Skeletor or his new ally get ahold of the crystal! If even half the stories about the Crimson Countess are true, that crystal could put all of Eternia in danger! We have to reach it before they do!”

But while the Masters were dutifully watching the horizon for any sign of the Evil Warriors, She-Ra was looking over at Catra, who was sitting in the very back of Man-At-Arms vehicle, her arms crossed and her brows furrowed into a dark scowl. She-Ra frowned. According to Teela, Catra had not reacted well to the news that Shadow Weaver was on Eternia and had joined forces with Skeletor; she had slashed the wall of the communications room, which had left four deep marks in the stone. The Magicat had been unnervingly quiet the entire journey. Adora didn’t like seeing Catra upset; it reminded her of when they were on opposite sides of the war, back when they hated each other.

She-Ra tapped He-Man, who looked over his shoulder back at her, and gestured to Catra. He-Man looked to Catra and, seeing her dark expression, nodded back to his sister in a silent agreement. The Man of Power made Battle Cat move slightly to the left so that they were following directly beside the battle tank and She-Ra could get in close with her feline fiancé.

“Hey, Catra…,” She-Ra spoke delicately. “Are you all right?”

“Every time I think I can finally move on,” Catra said in a low voice, “she always comes back to haunt me. That…monster…destroyed my life. Over and over again. She took everything away from me and always made me feel like I was worthless. Even after all I did to prove myself, I was never good enough for her…. I knew that she would never love me, but…I just wanted her to….”

“I understand how you feel, Catra, believe me” said She-Ra. “She spent our entire childhoods making us think we needed her, but we didn’t. We survived – we got away from her. And now we found our families – our real families – people who actually love and care about us. And now we’re going to make sure that Shadow Weaver gets everything she deserves.”

“Oh, I’m planning on it,” said Catra, flashing her claws.

She-Ra frowned at the implication her fiancé was making. She hated Shadow Weaver, but…she wouldn’t actually go through with killing her, right? Then again, Catra had nearly destroyed Etheria out of spite. Would she really fall back to her old habits so easily…? She-Ra wasn’t the only one worried. He-Man was glancing back over his shoulder, peeking at Catra out of the corner of his eye. He didn’t like the way their conversation was going. He-Man had never killed anyone if he could help it. There was something he found wrong about taking someone’s life, which is why he spared Skeletor so many times when he could have easily killed him. Skeletor called him a fool – He-Man believed he was just morally stronger.

Before either of them could voice their concerns, a faint _boom_ bellowed across the frozen tundra and He-Man could faintly make out what looked to be a white cloud puffing up over the horizon. Man-At-Arms called out to Mekaneck; the telescopic hero extended his namesake over twenty feet into the air next to Stratos. He peered through the blizzard with his specialized lenses at the site where the explosion had come from, zooming on six figures in the distance – five of Skeletor’s Evil Warriors and cloaked woman he had never seen before.

“I see them!” Mekaneck shouted. “Two klicks northeast! It looks like they’re shooting at the ground!”

“They must have found the chamber where the crystal is hidden!” said Man-At-Arms. “All right, people, double time it!”

She-Ra was nearly unseated as Battle Cat increased their pace, outstripping the Master’s vehicles despite having run an incredibly long distance without rest. While He-Man stared determinedly ahead, laser focused on their task, She-Ra chanced a look back at Catra. The Magicat was standing in her seat, looking ready to pounce at a moment’s notice. She-Ra really hoped she didn’t do anything she would regret.

Meanwhile, Shadow Weaver looked on in disdain as Tri-Klops and Trap Jaws blasted the ice floor repeatedly with occasional help from Whiplash’s tail. But after five straight minutes of bashing the surface, the most they had managed to do was leave a gigantic crack in the ice. It didn’t even look like it was halfway through. Tri-Klops and Trap Jaw blasted the surface again and the crack was only slightly bigger this time. Progress was moving unbearably slow.

“What is taking so long, you miserable cretins!” Shadow Weaver snapped as they took more potshots. “The crystal is so close! I can practically _feel_ it’s mystical energy!”

“Hey, if you have a problem with it, you’re more than welcome to assist,” said Tri-Klops grimacing.

“Need I remind you that Skeletor put _me _in charge,” Shadow Weaver scowled. She knew any one of them could crush her easily, but their fear of Skeletor stayed their hands. “So stop your complaining and _get – me – that – CRYSTAL!_”

“We’re doing the best we can,” Whiplash whined, slamming his tail on the crack. “It’s really thick.”

“Like your skulls,” Shadow Weaver hissed.

Beast Man looked like he had hit his breaking point and was ready to snarl something at the cloaked woman when he heard a mighty crash behind him. The savage villain spun around and stared into the face of a massive, armored, green sabretooth tiger before the beast slapped him away with his paws. Shadow Weaver ducked as Beast Man flew overhead, her eyes narrowing with contempt as He-Man and She-Ra disembarked from Battle Cat’s saddle, whipping out their swords. The Masters of the Universe skidded to a halt behind and jumped from their vehicles into battle positions. Catra moved to the front of the group, hunched over with claws extended and her teeth bared, growling.

“Surrender, villains,” He-Man commanded powerfully. “You won’t be getting your hands on that crystal.”

“He-Man?” Trap Jaw gaped. “How did he find us?”

“And how did he know about the crystal?” said Tri-Klops, unsheathing his own sword.

“I imagine they had help from the Sorceress lurking in Castle Grayskull,” said Shadow Weaver calmly. Her gaze roamed over the Masters, pausing briefly when her eyes landed on Catra, until she stopped on She-Ra. Her eyes seemed to narrow in delight at the Princess of Power. “Ah, Adora, how wonderful to see you again. You are looking – “

“Save it, Shadow Weaver,” said She-Ra with a heated glare. “Whatever you have to say, I don’t want to hear it.”

“How did you turn out to be such an ill-mannered child?” said Shadow Weaver with a dramatic sigh. “Where did I go wrong with you? No, it wasn’t my fault. That unruly pet of yours is to blame, no doubt.”

“Catra is not my pet!” She-Ra snarled. “She is one of the greatest people I’ve ever known! In fact, we’re getting married! How do you like that, Shadow Weaver?”

“…I could have gone my whole life without that disgusting image in my mind,” Shadow Weaver said with revulsion.

“It’s gonna be a very short life!” Catra howled.

“Catra, don’t!” Man-At-Arms warned, but the Magicat had already launched herself forward. She hissed like the wild beast she was, claws reaching out for Shadow Weaver’s throat. The masked sorceress remained still, unafraid of Catra’s assault, and chuckled with mirth as Whiplash suddenly jumped between them and snapped his barbed tail into Catra’s stomach. The Magicat Princess was sent flying back to the Masters, but Ram Man quickly stepped forward and caught Catra securely in his arms.

“I got ya, tiger,” said Ram Man.

“Oof…thanks, big guy,” said Catra, patting his shoulder appreciatively.

“Everyone, secure the crystal!” Man-At Arms commanded.

He fired his arm cannon in the middle of the Evil Warriors, which forced them to scatter. Beast Man, who had pulled himself out of the snow, howled like his namesake, leaping the snowy field on all fours. Man-At-Arms. He jumped left and right, dodging all of Man-At-Arm’s shots, then lunged forward with all his teeth presented to the heroic warrior. Stratos suddenly zoomed in at the last second, grabbing Beast Man by the shoulders before he could reach Man-At-Arms, and carried him off. The Avian warrior lifted his larger foe higher into the air, despite the snarling animal’s struggling, until he reached a good height and, to Beast Man’s horror, casually dropped him. Beast Man was very fortunate that he was thick-skinned and the ground was covered in soft snow or that could have really hurt….

Catra and Teela seamlessly weaved back and forth as they dodged Trap Jaw’s laser, moving closer to the cyborg after each shot. Trap Jaws was looking between them repeatedly, unable to decide to hit first and just started shoot them in turn. As she and Catra made their approach, Teela raised her staff like a spear and threw it at Trap Jaw’s arm cannon, lodging the weapon in the barrel. When Trap Jaw took his next shot, his rifle was naturally backed up and exploded in his face, causing the cyborg to stumble back several paces. While he was off-guard, Catra snapped her whip around Trap Jaws neck until it went taut. She pulled back on the rope, making Trap Jaw fall toward her with a surprised yelp, then leapt up to meet him halfway, slamming her knee into the bridge of his nose with a satisfying _crack_! Catra flipped forward and landed on her feet like a professional acrobat while Trap Jaw fell unceremoniously in the snow, going cross-eyed and mumbling incoherently.

“Not bad,” Teela complimented the Magicat, ripping her staff free from Trap Jaw’s cannon. “I think you and I would make a pretty good team.”

“I don’t know about that,” said Catra with a Cheshire grin. “I don’t think Adora would approve of having an ‘open relationship’.”

“Ugh! Why can’t you take a compliment without turning it into an innuendo?” Teela complained loudly.

“Because it’s fun to watch you turn all red,” said Catra slyly, pointing at her face. “Yeah, like that.”

Teela touched own cheeks and realized they were, in fact, slightly warmer than usual. That stupid flirty…ugh! Teela turned on her heels and trudged away to the next opponent, trying to ignore the look of smug superiority Catra had.

She-Ra jumped high into the air and swung her sword down on Clawful, who used his larger claw to shield himself, barely even scratched by the blade’s edge. The Princess of Power then spun around in a tight circle for a horizontal slash, but Clawful was surprisingly quick for someone his size as he masterfully snatched the blade with his namesake and refused to let go. The villainous crustacean jabbed She-Ra with his smaller appendage, which the blonde warrior narrowly ducked underneath. She then grabbed his extended limb, kicked his ankle to loosen his footing, and sent him flying across the ridge with a classic shoulder toss. Trap Jaw, who had regained his senses enough to sit up, heard a panicked scream coming toward him and looked up just before Clawful plowed into him, burying them deeper into the snow together.

Mekaneck blocked Whiplash’s first tail strike with his club and jumped over the appendage when his opponent tried for a leg sweep. The Caligar warrior snarled in irritation as he raised his fists, leaving his center exposed for Mekaneck to suddenly shoot his head forward into Whiplash’s stomach like a battering ram. While reptile was doubled over in pain, Mekaneck slid between his open legs while holding his club out, catching Whiplash at the ankles. Mekaneck jumped to his feet and Whiplash found himself falling face first into the snow. When he tried to pick himself up, Mekaneck jumped onto his back and pulled his club against the Caligar’s throat, pinning him into place.

Unfortunately, Mekaneck failed to notice something moving around underneath the snow until it stopped beside them and exploded. Mekaneck threw up his arms in defense when a meaty hand wrapped around his face and lifted him in the air, dangling him a foot off the ground. It was Beast Man, who was cackling as the telescopic hero kicked his legs wildly trying to pry the savage warrior’s hand off. Beast Man turned to Whiplash, who stood up rubbing his throat, and shared a silent nod. Beast Man held out Mekaneck while Whiplash started winding up his tail. Before he could take a swing, a pair of strong hands wrapped around his appendage. The Caligar let out a surprised yelp as he was pulled off the ground by his tail, spinning in circles, and set flying over twenty feet into the air, disappearing somewhere into the mountains.

Beast Man stared open-mouthed as he watched his ally fly until he felt someone tap his shoulder. The Evil Warrior looked forward at He-Man, towering over Beast Man with a smug grin and his fists on his hips. Beast Man stared at the Man of Power for a full two seconds before he dropped Mekaneck, holding up his hands in surrender. He-Man, however, wasn’t going to let him off so easily. He-Man grabbed Beast Man by the face, lifted him off the ground like he did Mekaneck, and slammed him back down with enough force to make the ground quake.

The seismic activity made the crack in the ice wider, which Shadow Weaver noticed immediately. Hmm….

“You all right there, Mek?” He-Man asked Mekaneck, clapping his hands.

“Yeah…not the first time I got manhandled by one of those ugly goons,” said Mekaneck, allowing He-Man to pull him up. “Thanks, Ad – I mean, He-Man. Wow, that’s gonna take some getting used to.”

“Tell me about it,” said He-Man, chuckling.

“It’s no good! We’re outnumbered!” shouted Tri-Klops as he exchanged shots with Man-E-Faces. “We need to retreat!”

“We are not going anywhere,” Shadow Weaver hissed, casually tilting her head to the side, avoiding a stray shot, “until I have my hand on that crystal!”

“Forget the stupid crystal!” Tri-Klops snapped, ducking another shot from Man-E and glaring back at the witch. “We need to get out of here – “

His words were cut off when Ram Man suddenly charged him from the side and headbutted the three-eyed villain, sending him flying over Shadow Weaver’s head. The masked witch watched with unnatural calmness as the last of her enforcers were buried in the snow, unlikely to get back up any time soon. She turned back around, seeing the heroes gather in a unified group. He-Man stood in the front between She-Ra and Man-At-Arms, his Sword of Power pointed at Shadow Weaver.

“You’ve lost, Shadow Weaver,” He-Man declared. “Surrender while you still can.”

“Screw that!” Catra spat hatefully. “Let’s rip her apart already!”

“We aren’t doing that, Catra,” Man-At-Arms chastised her. “We’ll lock her up in the Eternian dungeon to pay for her crime.”

“Are you kidding me?!” Catra screeched. “That _never _works. If you throw her in a cell, she’ll just break out and do it all over again! Back me up, Adora!”

“Catra…,” She-Ra mumbled, not wanting to be dragged into the argument.

“That’s just the way things work around here, Catra,” said Man-At-Arms firmly. “We’re taking her back to Eternos – _alive_.”

But Catra wasn’t having that; not after everything that witch had put her through.

But while she and Man-At-Arms were locked in an argument of morality, Shadow Weaver chanced a look to the side. The icy floor, partially covered in snow from the blizzard, was so close to breaking through. All it needed was one solid hit. The Evil Warriors are useless to her, as to be expected. Perhaps she could enlist one of the ‘heroes’ to help, Shadow Weaver thought delightfully. She didn’t know anything about the Masters, so they were no good; Catra would be easy to manipulate, but she was worthless in this scenario, just as she always has been; He-Man was certainly fitting, but seemed too levelheaded to fall for her tricks. That just left….

Shadow Weaver’s eyes narrowed pleasing as she locked her gaze on She-Ra, hands folded behind her back, and casually walked to the side. Man-At-Arms and Catra immediately stopped arguing and watched her carefully. The Masters followed her with their weapons, but none of them took the shot. Good…

“All right, I surrender,” Shadow Weaver said calmly.

“…wait…just like that?” said She-Ra confused.

“Just like that,” Shadow Weaver repeated. She stopped on the crack in the ice and turned to the heroes, keeping their focus on her. “It clear that I stand no chance of winning, so there’s no point of resisting. The Masters are certainly a formidable group, and an organized one at that. Much more than the Princesses. I can see why you decided to abandon them in favor of your new friends, Adora.”

“I didn’t abandon anyone,” said She-Ra, leering. “We got separated, that’s all.”

“Are you sure?” said Shadow Weaver conspiratorially. “You do have a _terrible _habit of abandoning those closest to you. You left the Horde, the people who raised you, your squadmates, whom you called friends, and even Catra, whom you shared a strong _emotional _bond with. But you left them – all of them – without once considering the consequences that your actions would have. And for what? A magic sword, a fancy palace, and sparkly new playmates – “

“I left the Horde because they were evil!” growled She-Ra. “They were hurting innocent people!”

“Adora, calm down, she’s just trying to get under your skin,” He-Man warned her, but Shadow Weaver spoke over him.

“And all it took was a couple of princesses you barely even knew to realize that,” she said with poisonous glee. “It wasn’t when your ‘best friend’ was being tortured almost daily – a fact you knew full well – but because a few random strangers you had just met got hurt. And then, you foolishly expected Catra to follow you like the good little pet that she is, expecting her to come at your beck and call.” Catra gnashed her teeth together, to Shadow Weaver’s delight. “But don’t feel too bad about it, Adora. _I _would have done the same thing.”

“I’m nothing like you!” She-Ra spat. “I’m – “

“Constantly going against the orders of your superiors because you know best?” Shadow Weaver interjected. “Willing to go to any lengths to get what you want, even at the expense of others. Ready to abandon your ‘friends’ when it serves you most, like you did with Catra and Queen Glimmer? You don’t want to admit it, Adora, but we both know it’s true…. You are just like me.”

“Adora, no!” Man-At-Arms shouted, but he was too late.

In a fit of blind rage, She-Ra jumped high into the air, Sword of Protection raised above her head, and brought it down on top of her former guardian. Shadow Weaver looked smug underneath her mask as she nonchalantly took three steps back, exposing the crack in the ice. He-Man saw this, quickly understanding what Shadow Weaver was planning, and ran forward to intercept; Catra picked up on it a second later and was sprinting on all fours beside him. But before either of them could reach her, She-Ra slammed down on the ice with all her strength, making the ground shudder violently. The ice fractured and broke away immediately, opening a wide hole in the ground that dropped She-Ra below before she realized what happened. He-Man and Catra tried to backtrack, but the cracks extended below their feet and shattered underneath their combined weight, dropping them inside; Shadow Weaver remained rooted in her spot and allowed herself to fall with them. Man-At-Arms and the Masters quickly turned and dashed away as the hole expanded; Mekaneck came close to falling in when Stratos swooped in and lifted his friend away from the danger.

The ground finally settled a few seconds later. Man-At-Arms and the Masters stepped cautiously over the edge of the hole, which must have been twenty feet wide, and peered down at the deep chasm below. It was faint, but he could make out a couple of moving figures against colorless surface below.

“Adam, Adora, Catra, are you all right?!” Man-At-Arms shouted down.

At the bottom of the icy cavern, He-Man pushed himself up to his hands and knees, shaking his head of the ice crystals that got stuck in his hair. She-Ra sat up next to him, rubbing the tender spot in the back of her head where it had connected with the ground. Strangely, Catra was nowhere to be seen.

“We’re fine!” He-Man replied. “Just a few bumps!”

“Yeah, this one is totally on me,” She-Ra groaned as she and her brother rose to their feet. She looked around and asked, “What happened to Shadow Weaver?”

“I’m right over here.”

The Grayskull duo spun around on their heels, facing Shadow Weaver as she stood on the opposite side of the cavern, looking remarkably unharmed from the fall. She was standing next to a crystal podium – the only structure in the otherwise smooth cavern – and floating above the pedestal was a familiar, glimmering-red gemstone.

“The crystal!” He-Man yelled.

“Yes, the jewel that gave the Crimson Countess her vast magical powers,” said Shadow Weaver pleasingly. “And now that power shall be mine.”

She ripped the crystal out of the air before He-Man or She-Ra could move to stop her. The sorceress moved the crystal to the indentation in the forehead of her mask, which was the perfect size for the crystal to be inserted, when she was suddenly tackled from behind. She hit the floor with an audible “Oof!”, her hand still clutched around the crystal, when a clawed hand seized her by the shoulder and flipped her on her back. She stared up at Catra, her eyes filled with unparalleled hatred. She pinned Shadow Weaver’s arms down with her legs, using one to hold her head in place, exposing her neck, and raised the other with her claws fully extended. For the first time in Catra’s life, Shadow Weaver seemed genuinely terrified of her – and Catra relished it.

“No more lies, no more tricks, no more escapes!” Catra hissed with every ounce of venom her small body could muster. “You’re dead, bitch! And I’m gonna be the one to do it! Me – the worthless nuisance you threw away! How’s that for poetic justice?!” She started to swing her claws when she felt a strong hand wrap around her wrist. The Magicat snarled and looked over her shoulder, glaring up at He-Man. “What are you doing?! Let me go!”

“I can’t – not if you intend to go through with this,” said He-Man sternly.

“Are you still going on about your stupid morality?” Catra spat. “If you even knew half the things she’s done – “

“You have every right to hate her – I know that much,” He-Man cut her off, “but that doesn’t mean you have to stoop to her level. We can take her back to Eternos and she can face punishment for her crimes. We can be better than her.”

“…Are you really that stupid?” Catra hissed, turning her body around to face him. “’Being better than her’? Newsflash for you, muscles: I’m not better than her! And if it means letting monsters like her live after what they’ve done, then I don’t want to be!”

“You don’t mean that – “

“Yes, I do!” Catra snapped. “This is why you haven’t beaten Skeletor or any of the other bad guys after four years! It’s because you’re too weak to do what needs to be done!”

“She’s right, you know.”

Catra and He-Man looked down at Shadow Weaver again, their eyes going wide in shock. In the heat of the moment, Catra hadn’t realized that she had lifted her legs off Shadow Weaver’s arms, allowing the sorceress the slap the crystal into her mask. The crystal glowered as sparks of red lightning arched from the gemstones down to Shadow Weaver’s open palms; her skin tingled with the familiarity of it all.

Catra ripped her hand away from He-Man’s grip, slashing at Shadow Weaver’s neck, but the masked sorceress blasted the feline with red lightning, freezing her into place only inches from her throat. He-Man attempted to reach for his sword, but Shadow Weaver also paralyzed him into place with only a twitch of her hands. As she lifted the two into the air and raised herself to her feet, Shadow Weaver could hear the telltale signs of She-Ra charging at her from the side; she was screaming at the top of her lungs, after all. Shadow Weaver only glanced her way before the red lightning streaked toward the Princess of Power. She-Ra shifted her weapon into its shield form and ducked behind it, but the lightning bent around the obstacle and struck her from behind, causing She-Ra’s limbs to seize up as well.

Shadow Weaver bent her finger and brought all three of her captives to hang in front of her; Catra sandwiched between the brother and sister duo. He-Man was putting up a good fight, and against anyone else, he might have broken free, but her many decades of experience in all forms of magic managed to hold him in place for the moment

“Isn’t this a familiar sight?” Shadow Weaver crooned. “Doesn’t this bring back fond memories, Catra?”

“You can kiss my furry – GAH!” Catra cried out as the lightning electrocuted her on Shadow Weaver’s command.

“Stop it! Leave her alone!” She-Ra cried; Shadow Weaver thankfully listened and stopped immediately.

“Oh, don’t fret, Adora, I’m not going to hurt Catra,” said Shadow Weaver in a tone that would be considered motherly to anyone who didn’t know her. “At least, not more than necessary.”

“Look, whatever you want from me, just leave He-Man and Catra – “

“You think I want anything from you?” said Shadow Weaver with a sharp, cold chuckle. “Perhaps I coddled you a little too much as a child to give you such an ego. I couldn’t care less about what happens to you now, Adora, nor whatever fate has befallen Queen Glimmer. I’ve had my fill of Runestones and Princesses.”

“So now you join Skeletor to steal the Power of the Elders,” said He-Man, his muscles visibly straining against the magical bindings. “You’re planning on betraying him once you get the chance, aren’t you?”

“Oh no, I full intend to serve Skeletor loyally,” said Shadow Weaver. “I’ve learned my lesson from past experiences, and Skeletor is much more observant that Hordak or the sorcerers of Mysticor ever were. If he even suspected a hint of treachery, he would kill me in an instant, even with my newfound power. If he wants the Power of the Elders, then it’s his to take.”

“And what do you get out of it?” questioned He-Man suspiciously.

“…Not everything is about me,” said Shadow Weaver. She hovered close to the trio and reached out. Shadow Weaver’s hand gently caressed Catra’s cheek. To an outsider, this would look like a gesture of motherly affection, but to Catra, it only brought back memories of pain and betrayal. The Magicat winced like she was being burned, and, to Adora’s surprise, the expression in Shadow Weaver’s eyes appeared to…soften. “…You’ll understand in time…. Until we meet again, Catra….”

Shadow Weaver removed her hand and the heroes dropped to the ground on their knees. Catra looked at Shadow Weaver, glaring, until the witch snapped her fingers and dissolved into a cloud of red mist. The cloud traveled upward through the hole in the ceiling, flying past the Masters who watched in stunned silence. The red mist traveled over the fallen Evil Warriors, absorbing them into itself, and floated away beyond the snowy mountains.

Roughly twenty minutes later, the Masters managed to pull He-Man, She-Ra, and Catra out of the cavern with some rope they had found in the battle tanks. Adam and Adora had reverted to their normal forms, which Adora immediately regretted when she realized how much colder it was without She-Ra’s thermal protection. They all gathered around the vehicles, Adam filling them on everything that went down in the cave.

“So Skeletor’s men escaped with the crystal,” said Man-At-Arms, frowning. “With that kind of power in addition to Skeletor’s they will pose an even greater threat than ever.”

“Shadow Weaver wouldn’t have gotten away with the crystal if _Adam _hadn’t stopped me,” Catra hissed.

“I wasn’t going to just let you kill her!” Adam argued.

“And because of that, Shadow Weaver has her power back!” Catra snapped.

“Enough, you two!” Man-At-Arms said with a tone of finality. “We can discuss this once we return to the palace! Until then, I don’t want to hear a word from either of you!”

Catra looked like she had something more that she wanted to say, but wisely chose to keep her mouth shut and walk back to the tank, shooting a nasty look at Adam as she went. Adora reached out for her fiancé as she passed, but Catra brushed her off, hissing, “Thanks for the support, Adora.” Adora rubbed her arm as she always did when she was uncomfortable, looking between her lover and her brother, who both seemed like worlds apart right now. Cringer noticed her discomfort and brushed his head against her leg, for which she was grateful for. She had a feeling Cringer was going to be the only cat she would be holding tonight….

* * *

When his men had returned to Snake Mountain that night in a cloud of red mist, Skeletor was almost taken by surprise. As he would have expected, the worthless fooled were battered and beaten all over his floor, no doubt coming back from another fight with the Masters. He was slightly impressed when the red mist solidified into Shadow Weaver’s ghostly figure, a crimson-red crystal now embedded in the forehead of her mask. Skeletor watched her thoughtfully as he rose from his throne, marching down the steps toward the masked sorceress.

“I see you were successful in your little venture,” he said coolly. “No doubt despite the utter failings on my minions.”

“They were as incompetent as to be expected,” said Shadow Weaver, looking around unimpressively at the groaning pile of men. “But they proved useful nonetheless. The power of the Crimson Countess flows through my veins, and my magical energy has been restored,” she said, creating red sparks in her hands to demonstrate.

“And now that your power has returned,” said Skeletor, stepping closer to the witch so that he towered over her, “you can make yourself more useful to me.”

“Of course, my lord,” Shadow Weaver said smoothly, stepping back and dipping into a courteous bow. “My power is yours to do with as you please.”

Skeletor stared at the woman for a full minute. Without skin, his expression was unreadable, which Shadow Weaver thought was more unnerving than Hordak or Horde Prime’s rage, not that she would admit it out loud. Finally, Skeletor turned away from her with a whip of his cape and walked back up to his throne; Shadow Weaver secretly released a breath she didn’t know she was holding. Skeletor took his place on the stone seat, resting his skull against his fist as he stared down at the newest addition to his Evil Warriors.

“I believe you said you had a plan for dealing with the Masters and these…Princesses,” Skeletor spoke softly and slowly, his voice tinged with an underlying threat.

“I do,” said Shadow Weaver. “Although, it’s going to require a little bit of faith from you, my lord.”

“…And you can garunetee this will work?” Skeletor questioned suspiciously.

“It will, my lord,” said Shadow Weaver, her eyes narrowed pleasingly. “_Trust me._”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had to go through a lot of revisions before I was somewhat satisfied with this chapter, and even then, I still don’t particularly like this chapter, but it got all the main points across: Shadow Weaver has power again and the dynamics between the heroes of Etheria and Eternia clashing. He-Man and the Masters believe in being better than the bad guys while Catra, Glimmer, and several of Etheria’s heroes believe in doing whatever it takes to win. And Adora is sitting on the fence, understanding both side’s arguments.
> 
> I honestly hadn’t made plans for any chapters other than the most important ones, so fillers are a little more difficult to pin down. Luckily, I have the next two chapters in mind, and you, the readers, get to pick which one you see next! Both chapters happen in the same timeframe and introduces some very important cast and plot points. Here are the options:
> 
> 1) Clawdeen arrives in Eternos with distressing news: M’ythra has been captured by King Hiss and is about to be consumed for her Runestone magic. Can Catra and Adam put their differences aside long enough to save her?
> 
> 2) Hordak has gained a powerful new weapon and threatens to cover Eternia in darkness. Adora, Teela, and Man-At-Arms travel to the Dark Hemisphere to investigate, but come across an enemy they would never have expected: Glimmer.
> 
> Until next time!


	6. Under My Skin

**ONE WEEK AGO**

Catra leered up at the Eye of the Sun, the mythic Runestone embedded into the literal heart of Halfmoon’s lion-shaped castle, and couldn’t fight off the sense of betrayal it gave her. She was the Princess of Halfmoon, the firstborn, heir to the throne, and yet the stone relinquished none of its power to her. Understandably, she never had he chance to make a connection with the stone since she was taken away as a kitten, but the least it could do was offer her a _little _bit of magic – maybe a tiny spark. It worked for Scorpia, Catra mentally argued, when she touched the Black Garnet. Then again, Scorpia was an only child and Catra had a little sister who _was _around to establish a connection with the Eye of the Sun, which is the reason why the ten-year-old kitten was here in the first place.

While C’yra and Se’vage were off in the underground city warning the Magicats to prepare for whatever may happen next, Catra stood in front of the Lion’s Den – a really dumb name for a castle, in Catra’s opinion – next to M’ythra, who was riding on Melog’s back. Catra glanced over at her younger sibling, still reeling over the fact that she even had a sister after nearly a year together.

She was a tiny little thing, arguably smaller than Catra was at that age, with copper-tan fur and dark stripes on her arms like Catra and C’yra, but she had two ocean-blue eyes and sleek crimson-red hair like Se’vage. The corners of Catra’s lips quirked upward slightly when M’ythra tried to straighten the slightly larger mask on her forehead which Catra knew was forged from the broken pieces of her old Horde helm. M’ythra had asked to have it made when Catra commissioned for her new headgear just before the final battle with Horde Prime, trying to emulate her big sister, which made Catra both happy and embarrassed that someone actually looked up to her. Catra took pity on her and helped the little Princess readjust her mask.

“You know what to do, right?” Catra asked M’ythra, settling the headgear into place.

“Yep!” M’ythra squeaked.

“Do you really?” Catra asked, leaning in close.

“Yes!” My’thra shouted again, before she meekly added, “but…do _you _know what to do? Just in case?”

“That’s not how it works, Furball,” Catra teased, ruffling her sister’s hair. “Listen, you got the easy job. When Entrapta gives the word, all you have to do is tell the Runestone to give its power to She-Ra, just like it did with Horde Prime. Simple, right?”

“I guess,” said M’ythra, scratching her chin in a thoughtful pose. “Why can’t you do it again?”

“Because that stupid rock doesn’t like me,” said Catra, glaring at the Runestone once more, making M’ythra giggle. “Don’t worry, Furball, you’ve got this. Everyone believes in you…. And if they don’t, it’s not like they’re gonna say anything. Not if they don’t want me scratching their faces off.”

M’ythra covered her mouth as she giggled again; Catra loved that sound. Just then, her radio crackled to life and Entrapta’s nasally voice came through, saying, “_Helloooooo, Half-Moon, are you ready to begin? Half-Moon? Hello, Half-Moon? Catra, are you doing that thing where you’re ignoring me again? Catra? Catra? Catra-Catra-Catra-Catra-Catra-Catra-Catra-Catra-Catra-Catra-Catra-Catra-“_

Catra’s ears twitched in annoyance as she ripped the radio from her belt and screamed, “I’m here already – SHUT UP!”

She was satisfied to hear more than half the people on the other end yelp in surprise.

“_What took you so long?_” Queen Sparkles said annoyingly.

“Well, excuse me, _your majesty_, but I have big sister responsibilities too, you know,” Catra hissed.

“_Something happen to M’ythra_?” Crop Top asked in concern; Catra hated that she didn’t hate the guy.

“Nothing I couldn’t handle,” Catra answered vaguely. “Now let’s get a move on. My butt’s falling asleep.”

“_Preparations are complete!_” said Entrapta enthusiastically over the radio; Catra could just imagine her pigtails flailing everywhere. “_All conditions have been met! Energy flux stabilized! All right, everybody, on the count of three, channel your Runestones into She-Ra’s sword! Ready? One…two…three!_”

Catra silently gestured to M’ythra by the third count. The littlest Magicat turned her focus back on the Eye of the Sun and raised her tiny hands over her head, her face scrunched up in concentration. Catra couldn’t honestly say how it worked, but the Eye of the Sun began to glow vibrantly, casting a ruby-red glow across the courtyard; the heat it generated suddenly spiked to a higher temperature. As the large red opal shined its brilliance across the cavern city, Catra kept her ear close to the radio, waiting –

** _Phbbbt!_ **

Catra nearly tripped over her tail by how fast she whipped around, her pupils shrinking as she stared at the handheld, too stunned to even offer up a response. She knew exactly what it sounded like – she and Adora had discovered the joys of whoopie cushions when they were eight. She could hear Scorpia and Crop Top guffawing on the other end of the radio, and it sounded like M’ythra had overheard the noise too based on the way she was trying to hide her own laughter behind her paws.

“_Did I just hear a…fart noise_?” said Glitter disgustedly.

“Entrapta, please tell you didn’t just waste all our time by building a fart machine?” said Catra exasperatedly.

“_Hmm, that wasn’t supposed to happen,_” Entrapta hummed thoughtfully. “_Oooh, I see what I did wrong…. I forgot to turn it on._”

“_ENTRAPTA_!” Catra and the other princesses screamed over the comms.

“_Sorry, sorry_,” Entrapta apologized, giggling. “_Turning it on…now_!”

Catra doesn’t know what Entrapta was doing in the Fright Zone, but whatever it was, they immediately felt it all the way from Halfmoon. The cavern city began to rumble violently, as if some godly being had picked up the mountain and started shaking it like a rattle. Catra could hear the panicked screams of her people echoing against the walls. The Magicat Princess lost her footing and fell forward on the concrete; the radio smashed on the ground beside her, cutting off any communication with the rest of the Alliance. Catra flipped around on her back, leering up at the Eye of the Sun, which had turned from its natural ruby-red light to piercing-white. Catra winced and shielded her eyes; it felt like she was looking into the actual sun –

“_CATRA!_”

She shot straight up into a sitting position, her heart pounding furiously in her chest, her ears perked as the tiny scream carried across the courtyard. She turned to M’ythra, who was clinging to Melog like a lifeline; the translucent cat was lying flat on her stomach, bracing herself.

“_CATRA!_” M’ythra cried again, burying her freighted face into Melog's "mane".

“Hold on, Furball, I’m coming!” Catra screamed.

Catra unsteadily rose to her feet, her attention focused solely on her partner and little sister. But before she could even take her first step toward them, the Eye of the Sun exploded into a painfully bright flash of light and Catra could feel the ground disappearing beneath her feet. Her ears tried to pick out the sounds of M’ythra’s cries, which seemed to be getting further and further away until, quite suddenly, everything went black –

And then she woke up sharply in the Eternian royal palace looking for mice –

* * *

**PRESENT DAY**

Catra leaned forward in her raised seat with a hand on her chin, humming thoughtfully as she looked over the holographic game board in front of her. In the chair opposite of her was her opponent, the Master known as Roboto. Yeah, Eternian’s were just as bad at names as Etheria.

Man-E-Faces had introduced Catra to chess: a real-time strategy game that involved moving the pieces around to trap the Emperor into a position where it couldn’t escape. Catra likened the game to war strategy, of which she excelled at – it was definitely better than that ridiculous tabletop roleplaying game the Princesses used. The Magicat Princess had taken to the game like a fish to water and beat most of the Masters (and absolutely _destroyed _Adora, who had no skill for strategy), only losing half her rounds against Man-E-Faces. Roboto was the only Master she had yet to defeat, which was understandable because he was a machine and could think of a hundred different strategies in two seconds, but Catra was too stubborn to quit.

“Cleric to E7,” said Catra, and the holographic piece moved across the board accordingly. “That’s check – again.”

“**A very impressive move, Catra**,” said Roboto, his visor flashing with each word. “**That is the third check you have put me in this game. It is very rare that I find myself challenged by an organic opponent. It is…refreshing. Tower to C7**.”

“Well, I did basically run a whole empire back in the Horde,” said Catra smugly. “For a guy who built the place, Hordak sure didn’t know how to run his own armies. Spent all his time shut in his lab and let everyone else do all the work. Paladin to D4. Looks like I have you cornered.”

“**So you may think**,” Roboto countered. “**You exceed expectation with your quick and decisive moves, but you fail to see the bigger picture. By moving your Paladin, you have unknowingly left your Emperor open. Empress to F6**.”

Catra watched dumbfounded as Roboto’s most powerful piece weaved through a narrow opening in her defensive line that she didn’t realize was there and placed itself into the heart of her territory. She looked over the board and realized that not only was Roboto’s Empress in a position to take her Emperor, but he had used her own pieces to cut off her escape routes. The Magicat leaned back into her chair with an exaggerated groan as the game board flicked off.

“**Game match**,” said Roboto. “**That makes five consecutive victories**.”

“Thanks for the reminder, Roboto,” Catra grumbled sarcastically. “Never thought I’d meet a robot that irked me more than Emily.”

“**If it makes you feel better**,” said Roboto, “**you were only two moves away from beating me this time**.”

“It really doesn’t,” said Catra, glowering.

“Still trying to beat Roboto? Good luck with that.”

Catra rolled her eyes and turned her head pointedly away as Adam approached the game board with Cringer by his side, something which the Prince of Eternia was quick to notice. It’s been several days since the mission to the Ice Mountains and Catra was still giving him the cold shoulder (yes, that pun was very much intended). Adam tried being friendly and putting it behind them, but that Magicat could hold a grudge as long as Skeletor. And Adora wasn’t helping much, refusing to take either one’s side and generally fled when her brother and fiancé were in the same room. Coward. But Adam was undeterred; they were going to be in-laws someday, so he could at least try to have a civil conversation with her.

“So…,” Adam spoke awkwardly. “That was a pretty close game, huh?”

“What’re you doing here?” Catra sneered. “Don’t you have some serial killers and rapists to let escape?”

So much for civil….

“Are you still going on about that?” Adam groaned in annoyance. “It’s been almost a week now.”

“And Shadow Weaver is still alive with an artifact of amazing magical power,” said Catra, hopping down from her seat and leaning in towards Adam; Cringer predictably took cover behind his owner. “A magical artifact that she’s using to help Skeletor? You remember Skeletor, right? The guy with no face who wants to destroy the people you love and subjugate the entire planet in eternal darkness? The guy that _you’ve _been fighting for four years and haven’t come close to bringing down? You remember him?”

“Yes, I remember Skeletor,” said Adam heatedly, shoving the Magicat back. “I remember he’s an evil tyrant who has no problem sacrificing his own men if it means winning. I’m not like that. I’m not going to just go around killing people just because it’s easier. We shouldn’t stoop to their level – “

“You people and your stupid moral high ground,” Catra growled, shaking her head disapproving. “You _know _that’s going to come back and bite you in the butt eventually, if it already hasn’t happened –”

“And we’ll deal with it like we always have,” Adam retorted. “We’ll beat Skeletor _without _becoming a monster like him.”

“You ignorant little – “

“**Excuse me**,” Roboto chimed in as he approached the feuding pair. “**If I might offer a suggestion** – “

“Stay out of this, Roboto!” Adam and Catra snapped at the poor machine simultaneously; Roboto looked between them and hanged his head sadly.

Catra looked like she had another (savage) word to say to Adam when they noticed several wide shadows swiftly flying across the ground. Adam, Catra, Cringer, and Roboto looked toward the sky and spotted half a dozen bat-like creatures gliding toward the palace, their lengthy wingspan nearly blotting out the sun. Catra let out a sharp yowl as her hair raised like a frightened cat, leaping over Adam and taking cover behind Roboto.

“Attack Bats!” Catra shrieked. “I thought Entrapta shut those things off!”

“**I believe you are mistaken, Catra,**” Roboto informed her. “**Those are Speleans: the native species of the subterranean region, Subternia. Though it is strange. I do not recall the Eternian Council holding a meeting today.**”

“It’s probably about King Hiss,” said Adam. “He and his Snake Men and still hiding somewhere underground, feeding on whatever poor souls they can get their hands on. Maybe they finally found a lead on Hiss’s hideout.”

“**It would appear that they are in possession of some unusual item,**” said Roboto, pointing up at the sky. “**It appears to be something…blue and wavy, if I am correct.**”

“Blue and wavy?” Catra repeated, ears perking up.

Catra climbed onto Roboto’s shoulders and leered up at the bat-like Speleans as they flew over. Two of the Speleans in the rear were holding a tarp between them, visibly struggling to match the pace of their brethren. Catra had to tilt her head to the side to catch a glimpse of what they were carrying. Something was hanging out the back of the tarp…. It looked like a transparent blue tail – Catra gasped as a thought occurred to her.

“Is that…?” Catra said breathlessly before jumping off Roboto and sprinting toward the palace on all fours.

“Catra, hold up!” Adam cried, promptly following her. “Where’re you going?!”

“**Was it something I said?**” asked Roboto.

“Come on, you two, hurry up!” Adam shouted over his shoulder as he sprinted indoors.

Cringer and Roboto exchanged muted looks with one another before Cringer bounced after his master and Roboto tagged behind, using the hidden treads in his feet to give chase. The palace guards paused and gave them all strange looks as they scurried through the hallways like a frenzied parade. Catra found that she didn’t care. She recognized that giant ball of pink fluff anywhere, and the last time she had seen it was…. Catra was coming up to the entrance of the throne room and tried to stop herself, but her claws were unable to get any traction on the smooth palace floor and ended up sliding into one of the servants that had been carrying a load of fresh towels to the living quarters, knocking her over at the knees and sending them flying everywhere. Adam, Cringer, and Roboto caught up a moment later – Adam fought the urge to chuckle when Catra’s head popped out of the small mountain of cloths, frowning with twitchy ears like the grumpy cat she is.

“**This is why it is often advised not to run in the hallways,**” Roboto said seriously, and Adam found it that much harder to hold back his laughter.

“Shut it, robot,” Catra sneered, climbing out of the pile, without apologizing to the servant, and pushed their way into the throne room.

They found King Randor engaged in a serious discussion with one of the bat-like warriors clad in crimson armor; Catra had mad respect for the king for being able to speak so causally with these terrifying creatures. They all looked in their direction as Adam, Catra, Cringer, and Roboto walked in. Randor looked mildly perturbed that they burst in on their private meeting unannounced, but he was far too used to this sort of thing by now. Thankfully, Adam had the sense to show a little decorum as he respectfully bowed to the leader of the Speleans.

“Lord Dactys, great to see you again,” he said politely.

“And you as well, Prince Adam – or He-Man, if you prefer,” said Lord Dactys quickly.

“I prefer Adam, if you don’t mind,” said Adam.

“Lord Dactys has just delivered some distressing news,” said Randor, frowning. “We were about to summon you when – “

But the King of Eternia and the Lord of the Speleans were suddenly shoved aside as something large and blue dived between them and skittered across the floor. Catra barely had time to raise her hands in defense before she was tackled to the floor by what felt like a runaway truck. Everyone had drawn their weapons – Adam, Randor, and Lord Dactys with their swords and Roboto with his arm cannon – while Cringer yipped and cowered behind Randor’s throne. But their concern, though touching, was unnecessary when they realized, to their surprise, that Catra was…laughing. It took everyone a moment to understand that the translucent beast wasn’t attacking Catra, but licking her face relentlessly like an overexcited puppy.

“Okay, okay, I get the point!” Catra cackled, trying to shove the beast back. “Just – get off of me, all right! Need to breathe!” The creature finally relented and stepped back, allowing Catra to sit up straight. She stroked the beast’s "mane" and said affectionately, “I missed you, too, Melog.”

Melog the Magic Cat made a deep rumbling noise in her chest as she leaned into her partner’s touch.

“**Do you know this creature, Catra**?” Roboto asked as everyone put away their weapons.

“Melog is my best friend,” said Catra happily, giving the alien creature many affectionate pets. “Well, my best four-legged friend, at least.”

Cringer poked his head curiously from behind the throne once everyone stopped making scary noises when his eyes fell upon the new cat. If it were physically possible, the green tiger would have hearts in his eyes the moment he caught his first glimpse of Melog. A majestic queen of the jungle, sleek and graceful, and a powerful build that could likely crush a man’s skull under her paw. Cringer purred fondly.

He trotted out from his hiding place, head held high and practically strutting through the throne room; Adam raised his brow with a knowing smirk. He plopped himself directly at Melog’s side, the alien cat looking at him strangely, and puffed out his chest in an effort to look more masculine. Melog, however, turned her head away from him pointedly with a huff; Cringer visibly deflated.

“Looks like Cringer has a crush,” Adam said in singsong.

“Uh-uh, forget it, pussycat,” Catra said, throwing her arm defensively across Melog. “She is _waaay_ out of your league.

“Back to the issue we were discussing,” Randor said loudly, reminding everyone where they were and the seriousness that was required. “As I was saying, I was about to send for Adam and Catra when Lord Dactys showed up. Lord Dactys – “ he turned to the Spelean ruler “ – please tell them what you just told me.”

“It happened yesterday afternoon,” Lord Dactys told them with a serious tone of expression. “The Caligar reported sightings of strange creatures lurking in the lower caverns of Subternia. We had assumed that it was the Snake Men since we know they have taken to hiding in the deeper regions, so we sent a scouting party to investigate – “

* * *

**YESTERDAY**

Four Spelean soldiers glided silently through Subternia’s cold and dreary caverns; their eyes naturally attuned to see in the darkness. They had been searching the tunnels for nearly an hour since the order was given, but nothing out of the ordinary popped out at them. None of them dared to let their guard down; the Snake Men were known for ambushing their prey when they least expected it, such was the fate of many Speleans and Caligar over the years since King Hiss settled underground. The leader of the scouting party was about to call off the search, fearing they were encroaching too far into dangerous territory, when –

“Sir, look over there!” one of the scouts shouted, pointing ahead. “Something moved in one of the caves!”

The scout leader followed the direction he was pointing, barely spotting something as it whipped around the corner of one of the smaller tunnels on their left. Whatever it was had been unusually bright-colored – something that could never be found in Subternia with its dark setting. Whatever it was didn’t belong here.

The scout leader gestured for everyone to land, two on each side of the cave mouth. The leader leaned around the corner, leering inside the cave. He could see the beast – it's mane and tail made of wavy blue energy – dragging what looked like a dead animal to the back of the cave. The scout leader moved closer to see what the alien lion was doing with it when the tip of his wing scratched the top of the cave entrance, making a sharp _screech_ in the silent tunnels.

The alien lion immediately dropped its prey and spun around, it's calming blue mane shifting to a jagged red, snarling at the Speleans that jumped out of their hiding spots. The beast roared and swiped its massive paws, daring any of them to take a step closer.

“Be ready, men!” the scout leader shouted, drawing his sword. “If it attacks, kill it!”

“No! Don’t!” The Speleans perked up with surprised expressions as a small, cat-like humanoid appeared from the shadows and threw her arms protectively around the lion’s mane,causing it to return to it's calm blue state. “Don’t hurt her! She’s not a bad person!”

“A child?” the scout leader gasped, then turned to his party and shouted. “Everyone, stand down!”

The other Spelean scouts looked at their leader like he was crazy, especially considering they were feet away from an alien cat that could rip their heads off in one bite. But they, albeit reluctantly, sheathed their swords. The scout leader raised his hands where the lion could see them and took a few cautious steps into the cave; the lion gave him a warning growl, but didn’t pounce. The cat child looked up at him when he was a few feet away and kneeled so that they were at eye level with each other. The child was hiding behind the lion's mane like a security blanket, the scout leader noticed. No surprise; Speleans were considered very scary, even more so to a child. He tried to give his best version of a friendly smile and spoke softly:

“Hey, little one, what are you doing here?” The cat child made a small, nervous noise. “It’s okay, It’s okay, I know I might look scary, but I really am a nice person. My name is Batros. What’s yours?”

“…M’ythra…,” the cat child mumbled.

“Nice to meet you, M’ythra,” said Batros softly, looking at the alien lion. “Is this your friend?”

“…Melog is my sister’s partner,” M’ythra muttered.

“And where is your sister?” asked Batros.

“I don’t know,” said M’ythra, sniffling. “There was this light and loud noises and everything was shaking and my sisters was – was – “

“Shh, shh, it’s okay, it’s all right,” Batros said soothingly. He glanced between M’ythra and Melog, having never seen anything like them before, when a thought occurred to him. “M’ythra…would you happen to be from Etheria?”

“Yes…,” M’ythra muttered. “After the big light, me and Melog woke up in this cave. It doesn’t look anything like the tunnels of Halfmoon. I wanna go home. I wanna see my mommy and daddy and sister….”

“I understand,” said Batros sympathetically. “You have every right to be scared after the harrowing ordeal you went through. I…don’t know how to return you to your home…but I do know there are people who are from Etheria as well. One of them is called She-Ra – “

“You know She-Ra?” M’ythra gasped, looking hopeful.

“I don’t know her personally, but I know she’s staying at the Eternian Palace,” Batros answered. He held out his hand and said, “Come along, little one. I’ll take you to Lord Dactys. He can surely take you to She-Ra.”

M’ythra remained uncertain and looked to Melog for help. The felines exchanged a silent stare, then M’ythra hesitantly stepped away from Melog and reached out her hand for Batros’s. They were only inches away when a sharp _crack_ touched their sensitive ears and everyone looked toward the ceiling. They barely witnessed the stone breaking above their heads before it gave way.

And then – chaos.

Batros could not see what happened next because his eyes were splashed with a venomous-green fluid that burned like fire; the Spelean scout screamed with his hands over his burning retinas, his wings flapping erratically. Though his vision was lost, his sharpened sense of hearing heard something like the rattle of beads before he was slammed in the gut by something that felt like a cannonball, throwing him against the wall and dropping him unceremoniously on the ground.

From his place on the floor, Batros could hear everything around him. He could hear the echoes of many hisses and inhumane screeching. He heard his party’s cries and the unmistakable sound of tearing flesh and clattering metal. He heard Melog’s furious screech reverberate through the caverns and the surprised shrieks of men before their voices went suddenly silent. He heard the voice of one particularly angry man followed by the noise of something heavy being thrown against the wall; a pained whimper came soon after. He could hear M’ythra’s tiny feet trying to flee before she let out a sharp yelp and tearful pleas to let her go, which was responded with an amused chuckle.

And Batros remained on the ground, stiff and silent. He knew he should be helping and felt ashamed as he listened to the little kitten sob frantically, but…he was scared. So he did not move. He would play dead and hopefully survive. Even if a child had to pay for his cowardice….

“Wait!” Batros heard a hissing voice shout. There was a lot of shuffling; the attackers were kneeling as someone approached. “Thisss…child…. I sssense raw, untapped power within her…. Ancient magic the likesss that has not been seen sssince….” He heard M’ythra’s frightened whimpers again. “Yesss…sssuch untapped potential. The child ssshall live for now. Come, we mussst return to the nessst at onccce….”

“But, King Hiss, what about the survivors?” someone to Batros’s right asked, his heart beating frantically. “That strange beast bit me – “

“Leave them,” King Hiss commanded.

“But – “

“Are you quessstioning my orders, General Rattlor?!” King Hiss screeched; Rattlor squeaked like mouse. “I do not care for petty annoyanncesss! The child possessesss great magical power – power for which I can ussse against the Eterniansss and Cassstle Grayssskull. I mussst have that power for myssself. But it will take atleassst a day to prepare a sssuitable ritual and I do not need your insssignificant grudgesss causing delay. Am I clear on the matter, General?”

“Y-Yes, my king,” Rattlor stammered fretfully.

Batros remained perfectly still even as one of the attackers stepped over his body, not betraying any noise. He could hear M’ythra’s whimpers getting further and further away until the entire tunnel was silent. It would be another five minutes before Batros found the courage to move from his spot and it would be several hours before another scouting party found them. He would be forced to tell Lord Dactys everything….

* * *

**PRESENT**

“Batros and Melog were the only survivors,” said Lord Dactys, frowning. “Their injuries were minimal at best, though Batros was permanently blinded by the Snake Men’s venom. A kinder fate than what I would have given for his cowardice. From what we have learned, the feline cub is still alive and has been taken into the Snake Men’s lair. But for how long that will be, we do not know.”

“Then what in the name of Hordak are we standing around here for?!” said Catra heatedly; Melog growled in agreement. “Let’s go find the Furball.”

“We can’t go rushing in without thinking things through,” said Adam, earning a glare from the Magicat. “King Hiss is one of the most powerful enemies we’ve ever fought, right up there with Skeletor. Plus, he has an army of Snake Men with him. You planning to go through them all by yourself.”

“Of course not, that would be stupid,” Catra scoffed. “I’ll use Adora as a human shield and – “

“Adora went on a scouting mission with Man-At-Arms and Teela to the Dark Hemisphere,” Randor cut in. “Said something about needing to get away from you two,” he glanced between Adam and Catra, who looked away, frowning. “I agree with Adam that we shouldn’t rush into anything, but the fact remains that there is an innocent child in danger and we can ill afford to sit around waiting for whatever King Hiss has planned…. Adam, you and Catra will head down to Subternia to investigate. And take Roboto with you. The other Masters have been sent away to deal with Count Marzo in Drisdos and Shokoti in Morragor, so he’s the only one we can spare.”

“Count Marzo _and _Shokoti?” Adam repeated surprisingly. “That’s the fifth and sixth attack made by the independent villains this week. They’ve been acting up recently – “

“Who cares?!” Catra snapped. “We need to find my sister!”

“After they recovered Batros and Clawdeen,” Lord Dactys spoke up, “my scouts followed the trail of the Snake Men to what we believe is their hiding place. My men can escort you there, if you – “

“Then stop talking and start flapping,” Catra hissed impatiently, climbing onto Melog’s back. “You better take me there in the next ten seconds, or I’m having batwing soup for lunch.”

The subtle growl in her tone made it sound like she _would _carry out her threat. The Spelean soldiers visibly twitched, glancing between Catra’s steel-cutting claws and her giant alien lion with spiky red mane. The soldiers flew out of the chamber like bats out of - well, you get the idea. Adam groaned, not even able to get a word in before Catra and Melog lunged out the door; the laundry servant’s frightened screams followed soon after.

“That cat is going to get herself skinned one of these days,” said Adam, shaking his head. But nevertheless, the Prince of Eternia whipped out his sword and shouted, “**_By the Power of Grayskull!_**”

One transformation sequence later and the mighty He-Man stood in place of Adam. The Hero of Power then turned his sword on Cringer, blasting the cowardly feline with the magic of the Elders, and transformed him into the courageous Battle Cat. He-Man climbed atop of his faithful companion and said to Randor, “Try to get a message out to the other Masters just in case something goes wrong. And with Catra’s impulsiveness, that seems like a guarantee.”

“Just be safe, son,” said Randor. “King Hiss is a dangerous foe.”

“Believe me, I know,” said He-Man. “Let’s ride, Battle Cat!”

With an Eternia-shaking roar, the colossal feline turned on his paws and bounced out of the throne room like Melog had; the poor laundry servant was still outside and threw up the towels she had collected with another scream. Roboto paused awkwardly, looking at the door and then to Randor, who gestured for the Heroic Warrior to go. Roboto gave the king a polite bow before marching out of the throne room at a steady pace.

“The cat seems like quite the handful,” Lord Dactys commented once they were alone.

“And she’s going to be my daughter-in-law,” said Randor exasperatedly, rubbing the bridge of his nose; Lord Dactys patted his shoulder sympathetically.

* * *

M’ythra tried curling up in the darkest corner of her makeshift cell, not because she was scared, but because it seemed to be the coolest spot in the whole place.

The Snake Men had dragged her back to their “nest”, which was really just an egg-shaped cavern with several dozen alcoves in the walls reconfigured for sleeping stations and holding cells like the one she was in. A large intersecting platform hanged over a pool of bubbling magma at the bottom of the cave, which explained why it was so unbearably hot. Before she had been thrown into prison, M’ythra had seen the obsidian throne in the back of the chamber underneath an ominous carved serpent, upon which King Hiss had seated himself before he gave the order for the Magicat to be taken away. M’ythra had never seen Hordak or Horde Prime because she was too young to join the war, but King Hiss certainly fit the image of what she thought they might look like: powerful and imposing with burning-red eyes that sent shivers down your spine.

M’ythra wiped the sweat off her brow for what felt like the hundredth time now, her fur clinging uncomfortably and her throat feeling like sandpaper. The caves of the Talon Mountains were usually cool during most days (and outright freezing during the winter seasons), but the kingdom was warmed by the heat generated from their Runestone. The temperature from the magma was greater than what she was used to and M’ythra thought she would have melted into the ground if it wasn’t for her caretaker –

Speaking of whom, M’ythra’s ears perked when they picked up the sound of familiar footsteps approaching her cell. The Magicat princess sat up quickly and crawled closer to the crudely-made steel bars as Kobra Khan came around the corner. While initially afraid of most of the Snake men like Rattlor, M’ythra wasn’t scared of Kobra Khan; a fact that the other Snake Men immediately picked up on and laughed at the runt of the reptiles. Their laughter was immediately silenced by King Hiss, who assigned Kobra Khan as M’ythra’s caretaker until they finished preparing the “ritual”. As for why M’ythra wasn’t scared of Kobra Khan – truthfully, it was because Khan was smaller and less frightening than the other snakes; he reminded M’ythra of the lizard people of the Fright Zone.

Kobra Khan approached her cell with a canteen in hand, shoving it through the bars for the Magicat to take.

“Drink,” Kobra Khan said impatiently. “King Hiss can’t have his food dying of dehydration.”

She didn’t need to be told twice. The Magicat snatched the canteen rougher than she intended, accidentally scratching Khan’s hand and making him pull back with a hiss. M’ythra guzzled the whole thing down like it was ambrosia. She finished the canteen off in a few seconds with a contented sigh of relief, her throat no longer scratchy and feeling just a little cooler.

“Thanks, Mr. Khan,” said M’ythra gratefully.

“I told you not to call me that,” Kobra Khan hissed, examining the scratch marks between his thumb and forefinger. “Look what you did, child.”

“I’m sorry,” M’ythra mumbled, her ears going flat.

“…It’s not that bad,” Kobra Khan grumbled, looking away; M’ythra perked up again.

“Mr. Khan?” said M’ythra; Kobra Khan groaned, but turned to the Magicat nonetheless. “What’s going to happen to me? What’s that creepy snake man going to do?”

“How dare you address King Hiss in such a disrespectful manner!” Kobra Khan spat. “He is the proud leader of the Snake Men, chosen by the mighty Sepros himself! King Hiss is the rightful ruler of Eternia, the absolute – “

“You sure talk a lot about the scary snake man,” M’ythra interrupted Khan tangent. “Do you like him? I mean, like him-like him?”

“…What is wrong with you, child?” Kobra Khan asked, bewildered. When M’ythra just shrugged her shoulder, he rubbed the bridge of his snout in irritation. “To answer your question, King Hiss senses a connection to a vast magical energy within your small body and wishes to make it his own. King Hiss has spent much time preparing the Ritual of Transference that will take your magical power and bestow it upon him.”

“How’s he gonna do it?” M’ythra asked suddenly.

“Huh?”

“How’s he gonna take my magic?” M’ythra repeated, tilting her head curiously.

“Well, um…,” Kobra Khan stammered, looking visibly uncomfortable. “He’s uh…going to...eat you…going to…swallow you whole – “

“Are you okay?” M’ythra asked in genuine concern. “You look like you’re going to be sick.”

Kobra Khan sorely wished the kitten hadn’t said anything out loud, because the comment was followed shortly thereafter by a cacophony of laughter around the bend. His eyes narrowed with clear loathing as the Three Generals approached.

Rattlor, as always, was in the lead flanked by Sssqueeze, and Tung Lashor, all of them cackling, making no effort to hide that it was at Kobra Khan’s expense. M’ythra shrank back into the darker parts of her cell, trying to make herself invisible to them. Unlike Kobra Khan, these three still frightened her almost as much as King Hiss himself. They effortlessly towered over Kobra Khan in size and bulk; a fact that Rattlor silently pointed at as stepped up to Khan, emphasizing the difference in their stature. Rattlor laughed again, patting Kobra Khan’s head like a dog; Khan hissed angrily, his fists clenched at his sides.

“The runt has never consumed living flesh,” said Rattlor mockingly. “It makes him squeamish.” 

Kobra Khan hissed defiantly and slapped Rattlor’s hand away, saying, “You should be careful about what you say, Rattlor. Don’t forget, I have King Hiss’s ear as his second-in-command. A position _you _once held, remember?”

That got the generals to shut up. Rattlor leaned forward so that he and Kobra Khan were eye-to-eye, no doubt wanting to throttle the smaller reptile. But he couldn’t; not without upsetting King Hiss, whom Khan was correct in claiming to be the king’s favored. Kobra Khan grinned victoriously, earning a dismissive snort from Rattlor.

“The ritual is ready,” Rattlor spoke in a short, even tone. “King Hiss wants the girl brought to him – _now_.”

“Then it shall be done at once,” said Kobra Khan. When Rattlor reached for the cage, Khan grappled him by the arm, stopping his hand, earning a hard glare from the larger snake. “_I _shall be the one to bring her to King Hiss. This is far too important to be trusted to the likes of you, _general_.”

Rattlor sneered, his tail rattling with anger, but the aged Snake Man pulled his hand back and walked away in a huff. Sssqueeze and Tung Lashor shot Khan with their own glares before they followed Rattlor.

Once they were away, Kobra Khan let out a breath he didn’t realize he was holding, then turned back to M’ythra. The Magicat kitten stepped out of the shadows of her cell, looking up at Kobra Khan with her impossibly wide innocent eyes. Khan grimaced, then shook his head and ripped the bars away. He stepped inside and picked up M’ythra by her armpits, surprisingly more careful than Rattlor had been when she was thrown inside, though he did hold her at arm’s length like she was something foul-smelling. Kobra Khan flipped her around before exiting the cell so that he didn’t have to look at her before carrying her down to King Hiss….

* * *

Meanwhile, two common Snake Men guarded the craggy main entrance to the nest, standing so stiffly it would make Adora feel inadequate. Neither one of them were remotely as impressive as the generals, so it was easy to take them out.

A leather whip reached out from the darkness, constricting around the left guard’s neck, and pulled him into the shadows where he was promptly beaten unconscious. The right guard barely had a chance to look surprised before a bulky hand grabbed him by the face and slammed him into the ground, knocking him out before he could raise the alarms. With the guards out of the way, He-Man, Catra, Roboto, Melog, and Battle Cat tiptoed quietly up the stone steps to the higher levels of the cavern, keeping out of sight behind the large rocks jutting out from the edges of the walkway.

“I still say we should have brought those bat guys with us,” Catra whispered, crouching down on all fours.

“They went back to report to Lord Dactys and hopefully bring reinforcements with them,” said He-Man. “Besides, I think they’re more scared of you than the Snake Men.”

“As they should be,” said Catra smugly as they ducked inside one of the alcoves. “All right, we made it inside their lair, now all we need to do is find Furball and get out.”

“I don’t suppose you have a plan?” He-Man asked hopefully.

“Yeah, it’s easy,” said Catra, smirking devilishly. “You go in their and beat up all those Snake Men, while _I _look for Furball – “

“Do you have a plan that _doesn’t_ involve using me as a human shield?” said He-Man.

“I was thinking more along the lines of human sacrifice,” Catra retorted. He-Man was not impressed. “Oh, c’mon, you can literally lift a small mountain, but you can’t handle a bunch of reptiles?”

“I just think we should come up with a better plan than just charging in bullheaded,” He-Man argued. “Most of the Snake Men we can deal with, but there’s also the generals and King Hiss himself. We have to be smart, or we could be putting your sister in danger.”

“Well, I don’t see you come up with anything!” Catra snapped.

“**If I might offer a suggestion – **“ Roboto spoke up.

“Stay out of this, Roboto!” He-Man and Catra yelled together. The poor robot hanged his head again.

But their argument was cut short when the cavern suddenly echoed with a chorus of screeching and hissing. The Heroic Warriors pressed themselves against the alcove walls, cautiously poking their heads out and peered down below. Just as He-Man said, dozens of Snake Men were gathered around the outer ring of the intersection hanging over the magma pit. It was only then that the heroes noticed King Hiss seated upon his personal throne, ominously still as the statue above him. Catra wouldn’t admit it, least of all to He-Man, but Hiss was absolutely the most terrifying thing she had ever seen – and she had seen Shadow Waver without her mask.

The king of serpents turned his head slightly as a small group of Snake Men walked over the stone bridge toward him. It was his most trusted generals walking begrudgingly behind his second-in-command, Kobra Khan, the smallest of the Snake men carrying the squirming feline in his claws.

“Furball!” Catra gasped, preparing to jump.

“Wait,” said He-Man, catching her by the shoulder. “Not yet. We need to find an opening. Get in, grab your sister, and get her out before they can react.”

Catra had a few choice words she wanted to say to the Man of Power, but mentioning her sister did cool her head a bit. She wanted to get M’ythra out with as minimal danger as possible. So, reluctantly, Catra ducked back inside.

Kobra Khan and the generals stopped in the middle of the platform, kneeling with their heads bowed in reverence while Kobra Khan held M’ythra aloft to King Hiss. The king of serpents lifted one of his hands toward the ceiling and a circle of phantasmal snakes rose from floor. When they dissipated, an ornate table with four stone snakes on the corners appeared.

“Placcce her upon the alter,” King Hiss commanded softly.

Kobra Khan approached the alter and set the Magicat kitten in the middle. At once, black spectral serpents slithered from the mouths of the stone snakes; Kobra Khan reeled back in surprise and tripped over himself, much to the amusement of his generals. The ghostly snakes constricted their bodies around M’ythra’s tiny form before she had a chance to escape, wrapping her in a dark cocoon, leaving only her head exposed. M’ythra was raised several inches off the table as King Hiss rose from his throne. The king of serpents chanted in some otherworldly tongue that seemed to echo from every part of the cavern. As the indecipherable words fell from his lips, M’ythra became bathed in a flaring reddish-orange aura, looking remarkably like a bonfire.

“Sssuch raw power for one ssso young,” said King Hiss as he approached the alter. “Sssoon, it ssshall be mine!”

Then, to M’ythra fright, King Hiss shed his humanoid skin to reveal his true form. His arms ripped apart into two pairs of poisonous-yellow snakes and his face was swallowed by a fifth serpent in the center, becoming a nightmarish monster that made Skeletor look like a clown by comparison. The five snake heads hissed and spat, snapping their fangs zealously, five sets of burning-red eyes staring unblinkingly at the whimpering kitten before him.

“Don’t fret, little one,” the five heads spoke in unison. “Jussst for you, I will make it quick….”

The serpents hissed furiously and M’ythra screamed in terror –

“That does it!” Catra snarled.

He-Man didn’t try to stop the Magicat from blowing their cover – because he was already jumping down before Catra had the chance.

As King Hiss’s five heads slithered up to M’ythra, He-Man suddenly landed between them with a ground-trembling thud, making the king of serpents take a step back. He-Man lurched forward and wrapped his hand around the throat of Hiss’s middle head, spinning him around once then tossing him back into his throne, breaking the snake statue above and piling the rubble on top of him. M’ythra stared in awe until Catra landed atop the alter, slashing the phantom snakes with her claws and catching the kitten when the specters vanished.

“Catra!” M’ythra shouted gleefully, wrapping her little arms around his sister’s neck and burying her face into Catra’s shoulder.

“I got ya, Furball,” said Catra, patting her sister’s back.

“King Hiss is in danger!” Kobra Khan cried. “Get them!”

The common Snake Men screeched as they charged forward as a group, only to be blown back when Roboto, Battle Cat, and Melog dropped down and blocked them off. Roboto had drawn out his entire artillery – which consisted of two arms cannons and a shoulder Gatling – and unloaded on the Snake Men, scattering them in a blind panic as they tried to run away. Melog vanished into thin air, confusing the Snake Men surrounding her, when the reptilian soldiers were suddenly knocked off their feet by and invisible force. Battle Cat charged furiously through their army, sending entire groups flying across the cavern with a swipe of his massive paws; Melog became visible again, subtly purring as she watched the massive beast chase the scaly soldiers.

The rubble exploded and King Hiss arose, his five heads spitting venomously, all leering at He-Man with his Sword of Power in hand.

“He-Man!” King Hiss screeched. “You dare to interrupt thisss sacred ritual?”

“Are you really that surprised?” asked He-Man smugly.

“You ssshall pay for thisss transgressssion!” King Hiss snapped, turning to his generals. “Kill the infidelsss!”

Kobra Khan, Rattlor, Sssqueeze, and Tung Lashor jumped forward on their king’s command. Catra settled her baby sister securely on Melog’s back, who immediately covered them in her invisibility magic, and stood side-by-side with He-Man, Roboto, and Battle Cat, flashing her claws.

“Bring it on, mongoose bait,” she taunted.

Both sides met in the middle of the platform and broke up into pairs.

Roboto found himself faced with Kobra Khan, whose small stature and swiftness allowed him to weave through the hailstorm of energy bullets the mechanical warrior unloaded on him. As he swerved closer to the robot, Khan expanded his hood and sprayed his shoulder cannon with a venomous-green acid that instantly melted the armament, forcing Roboto to detach before the acid to drip on the rest of his body. Kobra Khan pounced on him, but Roboto speedily replaced his right arm cannon for a mechanical claw and grappled him around the chest, holding him in the air for a few seconds before slamming him back down. Roboto seemingly had King Hiss’s right-hand pinned down…until he made the mistake of leaning too close, giving Khan a chance to spray his visor with his acid. Roboto unwillingly released the Snake Man as he tried to save his sight, allowing Khan to pounce on him again.

Meanwhile, Catra stood across from Tung Lashor in a classic stare down circling one another.

“And what do I call you, big, scaly, and ugly?” Catra taunted.

“_I _am Tung Lashor, the last thing you will ever see in this life,” Tung Lashor spat.

“Hey, I knew a guy named Tung Lashor,” Catra chirped. “I kicked him into quicksand and took over his gang…. I’m pretty sure he’s dead now.”

Tung Lashor snarled, extended his maw, and whipped out his disgusting, lengthy purplish-green forked tongue. Catra backflipped away before his tongue snapped against the floor, cracking like a whip.

“Ooh, _Tung Lashor,_ now I get it,” said Catra. “See, that makes much more sense than the other guy.”

Tung Lashor, not at all amused by her commentary, snapped his forked tongue again. Catra did a short skip to avoid it, but then brought her foot down on the appendage, stabbing it with her claws, drawing out a pained scream from the Snake Man. The Magicat pulled out her whip and snapped the leather into Tung Lashor’s left eye. The serpent general cried in agony, covering his face with his hands, before Catra lifted her foot and allowed him to withdraw his tongue. As Tung Lashor stumbled around blindly, Catra ran up and kicked him from behind with both feet, flinging him off the platform. Catra peered over and was disappointed to see that Tung Lashor had managed to grab the edge before he fell into the lava pool. Pity….

At the same time, Rattlor charged at He-Man, flailing his tail like a mace, which He-Man deflected with the flat end of his sword. The Man of Power then grabbed the snake general by the shoulder, tossed him overhead, and sent him fly to the opposite end of the platform. Rattlor twisted his body in midair and landed upright with a thunderous thud. The rattlesnake warrior hissed, his tail shaking in anger.

“If you surrender now, I’m sure we can arrange for you to be put back in your old cell in the Eternian prison,” said He-Man, smirking. “I bet your former cellmate misses you.”

“Mock me while you can, He-Man!” Rattlor snapped. “When King Hiss rules Eternia, I will feast on you slowly and agonizingly for many days, prolonging your torment until you are _begging _me for death!”

“I’ve heard that one before,” said He-Man. “No, seriously, Hiss uses that same threat every time.”

With an angry sneer, Rattlor extended his neck toward He-Man, bearing his razor-sharp fangs. But He-Man calmly waited until Rattlor’s face was close enough before shooting his fist up into a devastating uppercut that created a seismic _BOOM _on impact. The rattlesnake general retracted his neck, stumbling haphazardly on his feet as his vision faded in and out. Rattlor was barely aware of He-Man walking across the platform until he was standing directly in front of the general, who blinked at him absentmindedly. And to add insult to injury, He-Man casually flicked Rattlor between the eyes and watched the mighty general topple over like a tree, his eyes rolled into the back of his head and his forked tongue hanging out.

“Sweet dreams, general,” said He-Man amusingly.

Battle Cat snarled threateningly, but found himself being pushed back by Sssqueeze, whose arms stretched and slithered through the air like actual snakes. When one of the hands got too close, Battle Cat would snap his teeth at it and force the hand to retreat, but left himself vulnerable to be bitten by the other from the side. The armored feline soon realized that his back paw had reached the edge of the platform and all it would take was one solid push to throw him into the magma.The serpent general slithered his arms threateningly to encircle Battle Cat…when Melog suddenly popped into existence and bit down on his right arm, receiving a strangled cry from Sssqueeze.

“Yeah, that’s what you get, jerk!” M’ythra shouted from Melog’s back with her hair raised, trying to look threatening.

Sssqueeze snapped his other arm for the alien lion when Battle Cat lunged forward and caught it in his teeth. Together, the giant cats pulled on Sssqueeeze’s arms, sending him flying past, then slingshot him back across the cavern. He flew over King Hiss and smashed into the wall where his throne used to be, lying flat across the rubble with a muffled groan. King Hiss’s five heads sneered disdainfully at his defeated general, before turning his attention to M’ythra and the cats.

“Enough of thisss foolissshness!” King Hiss spat. “Bring – me – that – child!”

Next thing they knew, Battle Cat and Melog were suddenly reeling as they eyes were doused in venom. Melog thrashed around, spitting furiously, that she unseated M’ythra from her back and tossed her on the ground. The Magicat kitten started to pick herself up when she felt a familiar set of claws grab her by the underarms and raised her off the ground.

“I got her!” Kobra Khan shouted victoriously. “I got her! I – “

But Hiss’s right-hand gave pause when he looked up at the Magicat. M’ythra stared down at him with watery eyes that looked close to tears. Kobra Khan could explain why he was suddenly hesitating; he certainly had no trouble handing over his enemies like Evil-Lynn and the Masters. But a child – a little girl, no less – was somehow different. Those eyes of hers…they reminded him of –

“Get off her, you bastard!”

Kobra Khan was suddenly tackled from the side, dropping M’ythra on the ground beside him. He felt someone straddling his waist and looked up to Catra, her mismatched eyes flaring with anger, her pointed teeth bared, and her claws extended at her sides. Catra offered him no chance to defend himself before she started tearing into him, slashing his scaly skin like it was made of paper, splattering droplets of green blood with every slash. Kobra Khan crossed his arms to protect his face, but that didn’t slow down the Magicats efforts to deliver as much pain as possible, her mind drowning in a sea of red –

“**_CATRA!_**”

Catra froze in mid-swing, her senses becoming strikingly clear, like someone had dumped a bucket of ice water on her. She craned her head at M’ythra, who was standing only a foot away from the scene. She looked terrified, tears streaming down her face…but she was looking at Catra, not Kobra Khan or the Snake Men. Catra looked at herself slowly, suddenly aware of how it looked, straddling a clawed-up Snake Man – a shaking, whimpering Snake Man – her claws dripping in green blood. She was only now realizing that M’ythra had never seen her in battle or knew about her anger issues. She must look like a monster to the kitten….

Catra quickly jumped off of Kobra Khan, who immediately crawled away like a wounded dog, and kneeled to M’ythra. The elder sister reached for the kitten, only to pause when she noticed M’ythra’s muscles tensing up, the same way Catra’s used to when Shadow Weaver punished her…. Catra was crestfallen, but caressed M’ythra’s face with the softest touch she could muster, waiting until the kitten was relaxed before saying anything.

“Hey…,” Catra murmured. “Hey, it’s all right…it’s over now…. Everything’s fine.”

“You…you were really scary,” M’ythra muttered weakly, like she was afraid of speaking; Catra’s heart clenched.

“I…I know,” said Catra. “I was just so angry about them hurting you. I guess I lost my cool for a moment. But I’m better now, I promise.”

“…I don’t like it when you’re scary,” said M’ythra.

“Me neither, Furball,” Catra said sadly.

“Sssuch a touching sssentiment.”

Without warning, Catra was lifted off the ground by a mass of spectral black snakes, binding her around the torso with her arms clamped at her sides. M’ythra turned to run away, but one of the snakes slithered around her neck and raised her off the ground as well, being her face-to-many-faces with King Hiss.

“But I am very hungry, and I grow tired of waiting for my meal….”

“Your appetite’s about to be spoiled, Hiss!” shouted He-Man.

The five heads of King Hiss faced He-Man as he plowed his way through the small group of snake soldiers with ease. The serpent king breathed his shadow vipers, which He-Man deflected with his Sword of Power. He-Man threw a punch at King Hiss’s head, but the golden serpents easily slithered around his fist; two of them wrapping around the length of his arm. He-Man brought down his sword, but two more of King Hiss’s heads bound themselves around his wrist, staying his hand. The last head leered at He-Man with its burning-red eyes, then exhaled a small tidal wave of shadow serpents, carrying him away to the center of the platform and forming a restrictive cocoon. The cocoon could be seen stretched in some places, indicating that He-Man was trying to escape, but it did not break.

“No more interruptionsss!” said King Hiss, returning his full attention to M’ythra. “I shall feast! And the power within this child shall be mine!”

M’ythra let out a terrified gasp as King Hiss’s heads slithered up to her face, stretching their mouths impossibly wide that the kitten could actually see down his slimy throat. The Magicat cried and threw up her hands to defend herself…and unknowingly set off a series of sparks between her fingers. King Hiss closed his mouths and leaned in curiously when, completely unaware, a small flare of searing-hot flames exploded from M’ythra’s hands.

King Hiss pulled back, screaming in agony, his five heads charred black with his eyes taking the brunt of the damage. The shadowy snakes dissipated and released the Heroic Warriors. King Hiss stumbled around blindly, screeching and spitting, when a metal claw clamped around all five of his heads at once. Roboto – face half melted and sparking in various places – lifted King Hiss overhead with ease.

“**You failed to take into account that the little one could use her power against you,**” Roboto said to King Hiss, who was flailing in his claw. “**I believe this is game match.**”

And with one mighty heave, Roboto sent the king of serpents whirling toward the cavern entrance, smashing him against the roof of the tunnel before he hit the ground. King Hiss slowly rose to his knees, obviously unharmed from a simple toss, but his eyes were still sealed shut behind blackened skin.

“King Hiss is injured!” Kobra Khan cried. “We must retreat!”

No one, not even the generals, argued with Khan’s command. The Snake Men slithered out of the cavern in droves, some of them using the front entrance while others crawled into whatever hole or crack in the wall they could find. Rattlor aided King Hiss to his feet and guided him down the tunnel while Sssqueeze and Tung Lashor provided protection. Kobra Khan lingered longer than the rest of his brethren, looking back at M’ythra until Catra stood between them with the angriest glare she could muster. Kobra Khan flinched, backing away into the shadows, before shooting Catra with his own glare and disappearing into the darkness.

“**Are you all right, little one?**” Roboto asked M’ythra, kneeling down to her. “**I hope you weren’t too harmed in all the chaos.**”

“Emily, you got bigger!” M’ythra gasped, looking starry-eyed at Roboto.

“**I believe you are confused**,” said Roboto. “**My name is Roboto, not Emily.**”

“Can you do lots of neat tricks like Emily?” M’ythra asked excitedly, crawling all over Roboto like a hyperactive mouse. “Can you fly? Can you shoot lasers out of your eyes? Do you have a rocket punch? Do you have wi-fi? What is wi-fi anyway? Do you – ?”

“Well, it looks like she’s in good spirits,” He-Man said to Catra amusingly.

“The little Furball has the attention span of a fly,” Catra snickered. Her laughter died off quickly as she glanced off to the side shamefully. “Listen, about what we were arguing about earlier. I still don’t agree with letting the bad guys live, and if I ever get the chance, I will take them out permanently. But…I get what you mean about…being better people. The way the Furball looked at me…she thought I was a monster. She was scared of me….”

“You were overwhelmed by your emotions,” said He-Man understandingly. “It happens to all of us. Even me.”

“I thought I was getting better after all this time,” said Catra, watching M’ythra hang off Roboto’s arm. “But I guess I’m still a little messed up from Shadow Weaver’s ‘A+ parenting’. I think that’s the real reason why I was so angry about you letting her go. She messed me up badly – me and Adora – and I guess I’m a little scared I might end up acting the same way with her.”

“But you’re not her,” said He-Man, patting her shoulder supportively. “You have people you love, people you want to protect. We might not see eye-to-eye on our methods, but we can agree that we act because we want to keep our loved ones safe, no matter the cost.”

“Yeah, I guess,” said Catra, shrugging. “So…agree to disagree?”

“I can live with that,”said He-Man.

Meanwhile, Melog was pawing at her eyes, trying to wipe away the remaining remnants of Kobra Khan’s blinding venom, when Battle Cat trotted over and licked it off her face. The alien lion blinked several times, readjusting her sight, and started up at the armored tiger. Melog had a little smile on her lips and she nuzzled up to Battle Cat, purring affectionately.

“Uh, Melog, you do know that’s – “ Catra started.

“Just…let him have this,” He-Man interrupted her, grinning over his best friend's good fortune.

Catra shook her head and rolled her eyes amusingly as they watched their feline companions get better acquainted. She can always tell Melog later….

* * *

Somewhere in the dark labyrinth of the tunnels in Subternia, the Snake Men flocked around their king in fear and apprehension. The king of serpents was in the process of shedding the burned skin off himself; a process which was always arduous and irritating, especially for someone who had fives heads. Even the generals kept their distance as King Hiss ripped off his old skin, spitting violently as he did so. Once the last of the membrane had been torn away, King Hiss reverted to his more humanoid form, a look of deep loathing present in his burning-red eyes.

“So clossse…,” he grumbled. “I came ssso clossse. The magic that child wielded…crude, but powerful. With time and practiccce, she could become an actual threat in the future.”

“We can go back for her, my king,” Rattlor suggested immediately. “Start the ritual over again – “

“Ever the clueless fool, Rattlor,” Kobra Khan hissed. “That child will have been taken to Eternos by now, no doubt under the protection of He-Man and those accursed Masters. Any attempt to retrieve her would be foolish.”

“I bet that’s what you were hoping for, Khan,” Rattlor sneered. “I saw the way you hesitated. It was almost as if you _let _that child get away.”

“You dare question my loyalty to King Hiss!” Kobra Khan spat. “I should – “

“Enough!” King Hiss yelled and the generals immediately went silent. “Kobra Khan isss right. The child will be out of our reach by now. But…sssomething hasss me curiousss about the child and her sssibling. I have never ssseen a speciesss like theirsss before, in the present or old world. Where did they come from? And how did they come to possessss such primal magic?”

“Perhaps I can provide some insight.”

The Snake Men jumped like they had been electrocuted, spinning around while King Hiss calmly stared forward at the dark tunnel ahead. Imagine the look of surprise on his face when Skeletor stepped out of the shadows, calm and collected as can be. The Snake Men immediately formed a circle around the skull-faced mage, screeching threateningly, but the Master of Evil payed them no mind. He instead kept his sightless gaze upon King Hiss, glowing-red eyes meeting glowing-red eyes.

“Ssskeletor…,” King Hiss spoke softly. “You are a fool to approach me in my own lair. And alone, no lessss.”

“Perhaps,” Skeletor admitted coolly, something that actually took Hiss aback. “But I didn’t come here to fight with you, King Hiss. I came to make you an offer.”

“If you’re offering to replaccce my missssed meal, I will gladly accccept,” said King Hiss.

As the circle of Snake Men encroached upon his, Skeletor kept his attention firmly on Hiss as he said, “You met the new arrivals from the strange world that had recently appeared in Eternia's skies, correct? Surely you know about it by now. And you’ve met one who can use Runestone magic, too.”

“Wait!” King Hiss ordered and the Snake Men backed away. “What do you know about thessse creaturesss, Ssskeletor?”

“I know that there are more of them,” Skeletor explained pointedly. “Many of them capable of using powerful Runestone magic like the kitten that escaped your constrictive grasp. Only they are much more powerful, and much more experienced. And least a dozen of them landed on Eternia shortly after the new world appeared. Including a woman with the same power as He-Man.”

King Hiss genuinely gasped as said, “Another with Grayskull’s power?”

“Yes, these…Princesses, are all extraordinarily powerful and gifted with magic,” said Skeletor. “And all of them are a bunch of goody two-shoes heroes. My Evil Warriors and your Snake Men already have a difficult time battling He-Man and the Masters. With She-Ra and the Princesses of Etheria by their side, they will completely overwhelm us. Not even you, with your raw, primal power, will be able to contest against their combined might. The Age of Evil appears to be at an end.”

“King Hiss won’t be defeated by the likes of them!” Kobra Khan yelled defensively. “His power is un – “

“Sssilence!” King Hiss snapped and Khan immediately clammed up, much to the delight of the generals. “Ssso tell me, Ssskeletor…what isss it you are offering…?”

If he had any skin, Skeletor would undoubtedly be smiling.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m looking forward to establishing the deeper relationship between Catra and M’ythra in future chapters and how they affect one another. M’ythra idolizes Catra, though she is unaware of the darker parts of Catra’s history, which is why she is understandably terrified when she sees her sister’s more brutal nature. And Catra is conscious of how her actions reflect upon M’ythra just as Shadow Weaver’s affected her, and tries to set a good example for her, which is difficult when Catra still struggles with her own psychological trauma.
> 
> Kobra Khan was one of the more interesting characters of the 200X series in my opinion. He never seemed as outright evil as the other Snake Men, just a blind loyalist who was constantly bullied for his size and being a descendent. I especially found it interesting how he was revolted by the Snake Men’s practice of eating living prey despite being a Snake Man himself. There are so many parallels between him and Catra that I hope to explore later on down the road.
> 
> Fun Fact: M'ythra's name is actually the Magicat word for Furball, which is why Catra always calls her that.


	7. All that Glitters, Part 1

The village of Kartaki was a small, yet bountiful town. It was not as big as the major city of Drisdos or had an unique qualities like Viridas’ magic crystal, but what made this small village stand out was that it resided dangerously close to the border to the Dark Hemisphere – so close that you could see the barren wastelands just outside your window. This put Kartaki in a nature position to be targeted by the forces of evil, especially after Skeletor broke the Mystic Wall four years prior. But after the first attack made by wild beasts from the Dark Hemisphere, Man-At-Arms had created a force field generator that created a transparent barrier around the village, keeping out anyone the Kartakians did not want getting in. And from then on, life was peaceful in the village.

So you can imagine how shocked the villagers where when the village center exploded in flash of light and sparkling crystals, suddenly realizing that there their supposedly fortified town had been infiltrated. An entire platoon of men in sleek silver armor with red bat symbols on their chests had somehow appeared in the heart of their village without anyone seeing them. Everyone who saw the emblems on their armor cried in fear and ran – it was the Evil Horde.

Panic quickly followed as the Horde soldiers began firing off their laser rifles in every direction; some setting fire to the stone and straw buildings, and others shooting the escaping villagers backs. The Horde soldiers started kicking down doors, dragging families onto the street and forcing them to their knees, or kicking over random objects just because they could. Some of the villagers tried to fight back, but they were only armed with simple swords and farming equipment – nothing compared to the long-distance rifles and sturdy armor the invaders wore. And when it became clear that the village was a lost cause, several people tried to flee the town, completely forgetting about the transparent barrier that was supposed to protect them, but now acted as a prison. A small squad of Horde soldiers quickly caught up with them, forming a line with their weapons raised. The villagers held up their hand in surrender, but the soldiers already had their fingers on the trigger –

“That’s enough.”

The image froze just as the Horde soldiers pulled back the triggers.

King Randor observed the image with a heavy frown and his arms crossed; a pose that his daughter was, quite humorously, mimicking beside him. When Man-At-Arms had called him into the communications room, he already knew something bad had happened, especially with the recent rash of villain attacks all over the Light Hemisphere. Adora, who had been with him and Marlena at the time he was called, decided to tag along with him. Randor didn’t object; Adora wanted to spend time with her parents to make up for the lost years. When the pair entered the chamber, they had found Teela sitting at the main controls with Man-At-Arms standing over her shoulder, his mustache drooped into a matching frown. When Randor asked them what happened, that’s when Teela showed them the footage.

“That was the last communications we received from Kartaki before we lost contact,” Man-At-Arms informed him. “We sent a scouting party to investigate, but the village was empty by the time the arrived.”

“Not completely empty,” said Teela, scowling. “There were bodies – a lot of bodies. Mostly adult men.”

“The ones who tried to fight back,” Randor murmured. “Damn it!”

“Those soldiers…,” Adora said slowly. “The symbols on their armors…. That’s the mark of the Horde. Except their armor and tactics were different from the ones back on Etheria. I don’t think they were the same ones….”

“The Horde has been a problem long before you and your friend arrived, Adora,” said Man-At-Arms. “Their leader, Hordak, is one of the most dangerous and evil creatures to ever set foot on Eternia. Even Skeletor and King Hiss feared him so much that they were even willing to work with the Masters and even each other to stop his return.”

“But he did return,” Teela grumbled, crossing her arms and leering at the screen. “Thanks to that witch Evil-lyn.”

“Another one of Horde Prime’s clones,” Adora muttered, mostly to herself. “Even after he’s dead, he still manages to cause trouble….”

“What has me concerned is how the Horde managed to get inside Kartaki in the first place,” said Randor. He leaned over Teela slightly to get to the controls and rewound the video, stopping on the image of the villagers hitting the barrier. “There. You see that? The force field generator is still active at the time of the attack, so how did Hordak’s men get through the barrier? Did they use some special tool to get through, Duncan?” he asked, turning to his oldest friend.

“Even if that were the case, surely the villagers would have seen them coming,” said Man-At-Arms, stroking his chin thoughtfully. “And from what we saw, the Horde just appeared in the middle of Kartaki, in broad daylight, without anyone noticing. The only way I can think of that being possible is if they somehow teleported inside the village.”

“Is that even possible?” asked Randor.

“If Adora and Catra’s arrival is anything to go by, then it’s not beyond the realm of possibility,” said Man-At-Arms.

“Think Evil-Lyn’s using her magic to do it?” Teela suggested.

“If she had that kind of power, Skeletor would have taken advantage of it years ago,” said Randor thoughtfully. “It would seem that Hordak has acquired a new weapon; one that could allow him to instantly move his troops inside enemy territory unnoticed. With that kind of power, Hordak could attack the palace at any moment.”

“Which is why Teela and I will investigate Hordak’s citadel in the Dark Hemisphere,” said Man-At-Arms. “If we can make our way into Hordak’s fortress undetected, we might be able to destroy the weapon before he can turn it on Eternos.”

“What about the other Masters?” asked Randor curiously. “Won’t you be needing them as well?”

“I’m afraid not,” said Man-At-Arms with a tired sigh. “Mekaneck took half the Masters to Drisdos to intercept Count Marzo, and the other half are meeting Moss Man in the Evergreen Forest to deal with. Besides, a smaller number of people means we’re less likely to be spotted.”

“I’ll go with you!” Adora offered eagerly. “I was raised by the Horde, so I know all the protocols and field tactics…. And besides, Catra and Adam have been fighting all week and I just need an excuse to get away from them from a while.”

“Can’t blame you.” Teela commented.

“Are you sure about this, Adora?” Randor turned to his daughter with a look of concern. “I don’t doubt that you’re a skilled warrior, especially as She-Ra, but Hordak is one of the most dangerous villains Eternia has ever seen. Your brother nearly died the first time they fought.”

“You’re probably right,” said Adora. “If this Hordak is anything like Horde Prime, he’s definitely someone I don’t want to fight without a lot of backup. But still, I want to do whatever I can to defend Eternia. I want protect my home and everyone in it just like you and Adam.”

“Heh, that’s my girl,” said Randor with a small smile. He leaned forward and pecked her forehead; a loving gesture that Adora thoroughly appreciated. “All right, you three get going, but _be careful_. With the forces of evil acting up more than usual recently, we can expect that Hordak won’t be sitting idly by.”

“King Randor!” everyone turned to the door as a palace guard charged in, panting hard. “My king, Lord Dactys and his Spelean warriors have been spotted heading this way! They will be arriving any minute now!”

“If it’s not one thing, it’s another,” King Randor mumbled before addressing the heroes. “Go. Find Hordak’s weapon and disable it if you can.

“At your command,” said Man-At-Arms.

He, Teela, and Adora saluted in unison before running out of the communications room. The King of Eternia watched his daughter’s retreating backside until she was out of view, praying to whatever deities exist to protect her. But, on your current matters, Randor squared his shoulders and followed the guard to the throne room to await Lord Dactys’s arrival. Wonder what he wants this time….

* * *

The mighty and terrifying Hordak leaned forward in his black marble throne, his fist under his chin in a thoughtful pose. On his right-hand side was Evil-Lyn, his untrustworthy but substantially useful second-in-command; on his left were his oldest and most faithful generals, Manteena and Leech. Unlike Evil-Lyn, who was standing directly next to Hordak that she could reach out and touch him, the generals stood a sizable distance away from their master, too fearful to get any closer and risk being destroyed like their old comrade Callix. That was good, Hordak thought; it’s easier to keep soldiers in line when they were afraid of being killed at any moment.

Standing below at the base of the stairs leading to Hordak’s throne was someone whom Evil-Lyn called Colonel Blast – a ridiculous name, but Hordak did not care enough to say anything. The colonel had been the one assigned to lead his soldiers into Kartaki to test out their latest weapon by getting through their defensive shield. And to Hordak’s immense satisfaction, the colonel delivered. The ridiculously named soldier had even recorded the invasion through the lenses of his helmet, which was now displaying the entire event on a holographic screen in the air. The corners of Hordak’s lips twitched slightly as he watched the carnage play out, listening to the screams of the innocents bounce of the walls of his throne room.

“Careful, Hordak, you’re almost smiling,” said Evil-Lyn teasingly.

Hordak leered at Evil-Lyn, but the sorceress was not as threatened by the look as his generals, both of who visibly flinched. But even still, Evil-Lyn had the sense to bow her head respectfully to the Horde leader. Evil-Lyn wasn’t a fool; she knew how far she could push Hordak’s buttons before he finally had enough. He wasn’t like Skeletor, who would beat and torture his Evil Warriors, but still keep them around because they were still useful to him. Hordak didn’t _need _anyone – they were all disposable as far as he was concerned, which was why they all needed to make an effort to prove themselves useful or risk being destroyed.

“I’ve seen enough,” said Hordak, snorting briefly between words, as Colonel Blast turned off the hologram. “It would seem that our experiment has proven to be a resounding success. The Kartaki force field, which has kept my soldiers out for months, has proven ineffective against our new weapon. You have done well, Colonel Blast.”

“Thank you, Lord Hordak,” said Colonel Blast with a crisp salute. “With the weapon, we were able to infiltrate and subdue the entire village in only a couple of hours. The majority of the civilians were captured and sent to the mines as ordered – “

“The majority?” Hordak snorted. Colonel Blast visibly stiffened at his displeased tone. “Not all of them?”

“Well, um, you see, sir,” Colonel Blast stammered, gulping audibly under Hordak’s intense gaze. “A um…a few managed to slip away during transport…after we took down the force field generator. B-But it was only five or six, sir!” He started waving his hands frantically. “It’s nothing to be – “

Hordak did not care for what else the poor-named soldier had to say. His burning-red eyes glowed as he leered down. Neon-yellow cracks formed on Colonel Blast’s armor, quickly spreading across his body, even on his skin. Colonel Blast let out a terrified yell when –

Evil-Lyn looked away just before the former colonel exploded and found a giant smear where he stood only seconds ago, chunks of his armor scattered on the floor.

“You know, you really must stop destroying your own minions every time they give you bad news,” said Evil-Lyn, brushing off a piece of armor that landed on her foot. “At this rate, we won’t have an army left to conquer Eternia.”

“You had best watch your tone, Evil-Lyn,” Hordak sneered as he rose from his seat, effortlessly dwarfing her. “Your position is not secure that you can speak to me so casually.”

“Of course not, my lord,” said Evil-Lyn submissively with a respectful bow.

“Regardless of the colonel’s failure to complete a simple task,” Hordak snorted, “our main objective has been achieved. The test of our newest weapon has been a complete success. With this power in our possession, we can bypass any defenses, attack anywhere we wish without our enemies realizing anything until it is too late. This will turn the tide of this four-way war for Eternia in our favor. But the question remains: where to strike first?”

“Ooh, my lord, what about Castle Grayskull?!” Manteena suggested eagerly. “We can use the weapon to slip inside and steal the Power of the Elders – “

“You really are as idiotic as you look, Manteena,” Evil-Lyn scoffed, earning a leer from the fright-faced general. “Castle Grayskull is protected by more than brick and mortar. The Power of the Elders which give He-Man his powers are what also what keeps any intruders from entering. Even the weapon cannot get through the castle’s mystic barriers.”

“Then what about Eternos?” Leech suggested. “The masters have been busy fighting off the independent villains all week. We could hit them when they least expect it.”

“Hmm…that plan does have some merit,” said Hordak, snorting. Leech looked pleased with himself. “However… I find myself…hesitant to such action. He-Man and the Masters have proven a significant thorn in my side alone, but recent times bring new discoveries. Words has spread across Eternia that King Randor’s son is He-Man, fueled by the Power of the Elders. And now, because of that new world that has appeared above Eternia, Randor has a daughter. A daughter who possesses the same ability to transform into a warrior of power – a warrior named She-Ra.” He stroked his pointed chin, grumbling thoughtfully. “If there are two who have inherited the blood of King Grayskull, my greatest adversary, then the possibility exists that I could be…overwhelmed. Hm….”

“He-Man and She-Ra are formidable opponents,” Evil-Lyn admitted. “Ones that require a careful hand to deal with. But if won’t use the weapon on the Eternian Palace, then perhaps we should turn our attention to your rivals.” Hordak looked to her in interest. “Skeletor and Hiss have both interfered with your plans in the past, even going as far as to ally themselves with the Masters. As long as they are around, they will only continue to hinder your conquest. So maybe….”

“Maybe we can use the weapon to strike them at their weakest moment,” Hordak concluded with a jubilant snort. “Skeletor has always hidden behind his fortress in Snake Mountain and Hiss is always moving underground like the sniveling worm that he is. But with the weapon, they will have nowhere to hide. An excellent suggestion, Evil-Lyn. You continue to prove your worth.”

The two-time traitorous witch bowed to Hordak with also shooting a smug grin toward the Manteena and Leech. The generals leered at the sorceress, but wisely kept their mouths shut so as not to upset their great leader. Speaking of whom, Hordak levitated to the bottom of his throne and crossed the chamber, stepping on the smear that used to be Colonel Blast with consideration, and approached a dark corner of the room. Someone had been standing in the corner through the entire meeting, concealed in the shadows of the throne room, still and silent like a statue. Hordak kneeled before the unknown character, due to the great difference in high, and tapped their forehead with his forefinger, his blazing-red eyes glowing with power. A blood-red crystal gleamed on the figure’s head, and when Hordak removed his finger, the mysterious weapon gave him a sharp salute.

“Gather the army for another assault,” Hordak commanded, turning to his generals. “You will be leaving for Snake Mountain in one hour. I want Skeletor’s smoking corpse at my feet by nightfall…”

* * *

Adora found it unsettling how drastic the changes between the Light and the Dark Hemisphere actually were. There was only a small gorge that separated the two sides of Eternia, but as she, Teela, and Man-At-Arms flew over the border, the sunny morning sky instantly shifted into a starry backdrop, like someone had flipped a switch between night and day. They flew a few miles further into the Dark Hemisphere until Man-At-Arms lowered the Battle Hawk behind a small outcrop of rocks, pressing a finger to his mustache to signal them for silence as they disembarked. Together, the three of them crawled up the rocks with their bodies pressed low to the ground to avoid detection. Once they reached the top, Adora got her first look at main headquarters of Eternia’s version of Hordak.

As to be expected of the Horde, the entire landscape had been paved over and replaced with a gigantic industrial city full of metal structures, conveyor belt systems, and smoke stacks as far as the eye can see. But unlike the Fright Zone, which could only be described as a chaotic mess, the metal city below them were more organized; all of the buildings lined up in an orderly fashion with the biggest structures in the center of the city and the smaller buildings near the outskirts. There were actual paved roads with vehicles moving from one place to another without delays or traffic blockage. And at the heart of the city was massive tower of black steel with the Horde’s emblem burning bright red on the front – Hordak’s citadel undoubtedly.

“Wow, this place is like the Fright Zone, only cleaner and more organized,” said Adora, sounding impressed.

“If you have to say one thing about Hordak,” said Teela, “the guy likes things neat and orderly.”

“He must have gotten that from Horde Prime, too,” Adora muttered.

“Getting to Hordak’s Citadel will be difficult,” said Man-At-Arms, bringing a pair of high-tech binoculars to his eyes. “In the past, we have been able to sneak in through the waste disposal unit, the underground sewer pipes, and the water purification system. But it looks like Hordak has been learning with each attempt.” He peered left and right slowly. “All of the old routes have been fortified with new security and extra guards. Even the ventilation systems around the outer walls I was hoping of using have been reinforced with Eternium protection screens. We’re going to need to come up with a new strategy.”

“I already have one,” said Adora confidently. “We’re going to walk straight through.”

“And how are we going to just walk into a city full of armed guards?” Teela asked incredulously.

“Duncan, you brought those Horde armors like I asked?” said Adora to Man-At-Arms.

“There are three loaded up in the Battle Hawk,” Man-At-Arms answers, sliding back down to the transport and opening the cargo hold, revealing three sets of silver armor with red bat emblems. “Eternia acquired several of them from Horde soldiers that have been imprisoned over the years. These three should be right around our sizes.”

“Okay, so the plan is to disguise as Horde soldiers and sneak in,” said Teela, crossing her arms. “Pretty basic, but the Horde has all kinds of codes and protocols we don’t know about. If we get questioned and don’t know the answer, we would have the entire Horde on top of our heads.”

“You forget that I was a Force Captain…for half a day,” said Adora, mumbling the last part. “B-But Catra and Scorpia were Force Captains for years and they told me all the technical terms…. Okay, Scorpia did, but the point is!” She shouted at Teela’s disapproving glare. “Etheria Hordak and Eternia Hordak were both made by Horde Prime and their militaries are similar enough that they might follow the same rules.”

“You’re banking a lot on a ‘what-if’,” said Teela.

“It’s risky,” said Man-At-Arms, picking up a Horde helmet and tossing it to Teela, “but it’s the only plan we have. It’s either this or we charge the city head-on. Now suit up.”

As the Heroic Warriors slipped into their disguises, they were unaware of the cloaked figure watching them from the top of the rocky outcrop. The mysterious watcher observed them for several seconds, his cloak billowing dramatically in the Dark Hemisphere’s dusty wind. Then she whipped out a gilded bow from behind, knocked an arrow with a length of rope attached, and shot it to the top of one of the city’s buildings. He glanced back at the heroes as they started putting on their helmets and swung away into the unknown.

* * *

So far so good, Adora though as they crossed the street to the next block. The Horde armor she, Teela, and Man-At-Arms had put on had gotten them into the metal city without any issue, and Adora learned that Eternian Horde soldiers had much more comfortable uniforms and better padding than the ones on Etheria. Yet another reason why she hated the Etherian Hordak, the lousy cheapskate. So far, they had managed to pass themselves off as average, everyday Horde soldiers by mimicking the rest of the city’s inhabitants: walking in a single filed line along the designated routes clearly marked on the sidewalks, pausing only to adhere to the traffic signals when crossing the streets.

Adora was actually starting to wish she had been kidnapped by Eternia’s Hordak; this one made Etheria’s version look like a hot mess.

“We’re getting close to the citadel,” Man-At-Arms whispered in the back of the line. Adora tilted her head back as the black tower got closer. “Are you sure you know what to do, Adora?”

“Trust me, I know how the Horde thinks,” Adora muttered back from the front.

“You know how _Etheria’s _Horde thinks,” Teela hissed in the middle. “What if they don’t follow the same codes?”

“I’ve got a plan for that, too,” Adora answered confidently. “Trust me, Teela.”

It’s not easy to trust someone who blew He-Man secret the first day she showed up, Teela thought, but chose to vocalize her opinion. Instead, she straightened her back and stayed close to Adora as the three of them approached the wide steel doors of the black tower. Surprisingly, there were only two Horde soldiers standing on either side of the doors, standing stiff as statues with their rifles parallel to their chests. The lack of increased security was astonishing for Hordak’s seat of power, though the ancient tyrant probably figured that anyone who _did _to get through a city full of armed soldiers would probably not last very long against the monster himself.

As Adora, Teela, and Man-At-Arms walked up to the door, the guards immediately moved into ready positions and aimed their rifles at the heroes. Teela felt the urge to reach for her staff hidden in her pocket, but Adora stepped forward and went into a standard military salute. Man-At-Arms followed her example and Teela did the same afterwards. The guards hadn’t shot them yet; that was a good sign.

“Hold it right there!” The guard on the right, a woman, commanded. “This is a restricted area! State your name, rank, and your reason for being here!”

“Force Captain Lonnie with Cadets Kyle and Rogelio of Horde Unit 211!” Adora answered firmly, using the first names she could think of. “We are issuing a progress report to General Manteena for a Code Red-27B regarding the recent assault on Kartaki Village!”

“Code Red-27B?” the guard on the right, a man, repeated suspiciously. “I’ve never heard of any Code Red-27B….”

Great, off to fantastic start, Teela thought sarcastically. She started reaching for her staff, but Adora could cut in, saying, “You don’t know what a Code Red-27B is? The complete sanitization of areas newly acquired under Horde occupation? It’s on page thirty-seven of the training manual…. You did memorized the manual, didn’t you, soldier?”

“Er…,” the female guard muttered dumbfoundedly.

“Are you implying, soldier, that you have not thoroughly memorized the training manual as expected of all Horde soldiers?” Adora did an impressive job scolding them; the guards actually shrunk under her indictments. “Who is your commanding officer? I need to know who to report to if the soldiers guarding Lord Hordak’s citadel are trying to impede important business with his armies. Or maybe I should file a complaint directly to Lord Hordak and tell him that you are hindering his perfect order.”

“T-t-there’s no need for that!” the man stammered fearfully. “No reason to bother Lord Hordak about a little misunderstanding, right?”

“Y-yeah, no need,” the female guard said, trembling. “H-Here, let me get the door for you.”

The soldier punched the keypad so hard Adora thought she would break her fingers. The bolted doors clanged loudly as they pulled apart and opened up to the long, red lighted hallway. The two guards moved back to either side of the door and saluted even more rigidly than before as Adora, Teela, and Man-At-Arms marched into the citadel. They didn’t stop until the door closed behind them and Teela drooped forward, letting out a lengthy sigh.

“I thought we were going to get caught there for a moment,” she said exhaustedly.

“That was some quick thinking, Adora,” Man-At Arms complimented.

“Thanks,” said Adora, smiling sheepishly under her helmet. “I just reached deep down into my ‘Inner-Catra’ and went with it. I honestly didn’t think it would work.”

“The important thing is that we’re inside the citadel and Hordak doesn’t know we’re here,” said Man-At-Arms. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a device that displayed a holographic image of the tower; it had a blinking red light near the top. “Past expeditions have given us a somewhat good idea of the citadel’s layout. Hordak’s throne room is at the top, as to be expected, but his laboratory is suspected to be somewhere on the forty-ninth floor. If the weapon is here, that’s most likely where we’ll find it.”

“Don’t let your guard down,” Teela warned. “If there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that when something goes too well, it always blows up in your face.”

“That’s a pessimistic point of view,” said Adora blankly. “C’mon. If this place is anything like the Fright Zone, there should be a service elevator down the hall and to the right. We can use it to get up to lab faster than the stairs.”

Teela and Man-At-Arms had no complaints with the idea; an elevator was much better than climbing the whole way up. The followed behind Adora in single file, staring straight ahead as they passed other Horde soldiers down the hall. What none of them realized was that someone was watching them through the grate of the ventilation shaft, crawling silently through the ducks after them.

* * *

Back out front, the female guard was standing straight at her post like she was supposed to, but her partner was noticeably slumped over a book her had pulled out of his bag, pouring over the pages intently. It was the Horde training manual based on the red bat emblem on the front cover. Why would he - ?

“I knew it!!” The male guard suddenly shouted, making his partner jump. “I just check the manual cover to cover! There is no Code Red-27B!”

Feeling a chill running up her spine, the female guard reached for the radio on her belt, fumbling with it for a second, before yelling into the speaker:

“Command, this is front gate! We have a problem!”

* * *

Hordak, Evil-Lyn, and his generals were gathered around a transparent map of the Dark Hemisphere that Evil-Lyn had conjured in the center of Hordak’s throne room. The leader of the Horde narrowed his burning-red eyes on the small figure that represented Snake Mountain, snorting in a disdainful sort of way.

“I recommend we attack Skeletor’s fortress first, Lord Hordak,” Leech hissed. “We already know that he’s based himself in Snake Mountain, so we’ll have the advantage. But as for King Hiss and his Snake Men, we know they are lurking somewhere in Subternia. The tunnels stretch for hundreds of miles below the Light Hemisphere. It could take weeks of reconnaissance to find them, not considering if those reptiles ambush our scouts.”

“With the weapon, we could shorten that time in days,” Hordak snorted. “But you are right, general, attacking Skeletor’s Evil Warriors would be more prudent. The quicker we can eliminate our rivals, the sooner we can spread our shadow over Eternia. Evil-Lyn, you were once Skeletor’s right hand. What do you think he would – ?”

But their discussion was cut off by the annoying ring of a communicator that someone had forgotten to switch to vibrate. Hordak, Evil-Lyn, and Leech craned their heads slowly toward Manteena, who only just realized that it was his communicator that was going off and fumbled through his pockets for his device. He gulped loudly at Hordak’s furiously sneer, his eyes glowing with power, but thankfully hadn’t blasted him to pieces yet. When he finally pulled out the device, he turned around and cupped his hand around the receiver.

“This had better be important!” He hissed quietly, glancing back tentatively to his master; yep, still angry. However, his attention was drawn away from Hordak when the person on the other end chattered loudly in his large ears. “What? Are you sure? ...All right, that will be all.” He clicked off the device and turned back to Hordak with a serious expression. “Lord Hordak, there intruders inside the citadel. Three of them dressed in stolen Horde armor. Command says they’ve taken the service elevator and are headed to the forty-ninth floor.”

“They’re headed for my laboratory,” Hordak grumbled, stroking his chin. “The Masters must have found out about the weapon, no doubt due to Colonel Blast’s incompetence; I was right to punish him for his failure. But they’re looking in the wrong place,” he added with a snorting chuckle.

“I’ll alert the guards – “ Manteena started, but Hordak cut him off.

“No,” he commanded. “If it is the Masters, I can’t trust those useless soldiers to do anything about it. You and General Leech will deal with them. And make sure to bring them back to me alive. I want to send a message to Randor about what happens to those who encroach upon my domain.”

“If I might make a suggestion, my lord,” Evil-Lyn chimed in. “If the Masters want the weapon so badly…why not give it to them?”

Hordak looked at the wicked sorceress, considering her for a moment, before his lips curled into a devilish grin. They turned to the shadowy corner of the room where their mysterious figure had been standing the entire time, clenching their fists at their side, which suddenly gained a luminescent glow.

* * *

When the elevator doors opened, Man-At-Arms poked his head out and gave a cursory look around. The hallways were almost empty save for a pair of soldiers carrying a bunch of heavy boxes, thankfully head away from the direction they needed to go. Man-At-Arms waved for the other two to follow, calmly heading down the hallway, maintaining the illusion that they were Horde soldiers going about their usual business.

“Hordak’s lab should be up ahead,” Man-At-Arms said softly. “Stay calm and don’t give them any reason to be suspicious.”

“He’s talking to you, Adora,” said Teela pointedly.

“Me? Why me?” asked Adora dumbfounded.

“Oh, I don’t know,” said Teela sarcastically. “Maybe it’s because you can’t keep a secret to save your life. Or Adam’s secret for that matter. Remind me, how long did you wait before telling Skeletor you were She-Ra and gave away your own brother’s secret?”

“You’re never gonna let that go, are you?” Adora grimace.

“Enough, you two,” Man-At-Arms said with a tone of finality. “We’re here.”

They came up to a set of steel doors at the end of the hall emblazoned with the Horde emblem – because of course they were – and the doors opened up to them automatically when they got close. Adora was surprised how easy it was getting into Hordak’s inner sanctum, but she figured that no one was suicidal enough to try if even half the stories she heard about Eternia’s Hordak was true. Once the doors close behind them, the Heroic Warriors removed their helmets, which was a relief to Adora and Teela who had to hide their long hair inside the stuffy suits, and looked around.

Eternia Hordak’s laboratory was just as clean and organized as the rest of his empire to the point where Adora would call him even more of a neat freak than Horde Prime. The room was divided into four separate zones by red tape on the floor, and each zone was designated to a specific purpose. One zone had various tools Adora had never seen before hanging on the wall above a metal workbench with what looked like the makings of a new electronic device. The zone next to it was meticulously arranged with beakers, flasks, test tubes, and spiraling tubes filled with chemicals of every color in the rainbow and noxious fumes wafting toward the ceiling. The corner on their right only had a giant tank filled with emerald-green liquid and several monitors attached to the wall. There was something floating in the liquid that was the size of She-Ra’s fist, but Adora feel like seeing what it was. And the last corner was strikingly different from the rest of the lab, possession wooden desk with a crystal ball, various colored crystals, and stones with strange glowing markings while a bookshelf filled with books written in ancient languages stood next to it. That sections must have been devoted to magical research, Adora thought.

“Start looking around,” Man-At-Arms ordered swiftly, pacing over to the work bench and inspecting the half-finished device. “See if there’s anything you can find that might tell us how Hordak is getting his troops around.”

“Maybe he found some kind of magic spell,” Adora suggested. She walked over to the magic research station and pulled a book from the shelf, only to realize she can’t understand a single word. “My friend Glimmer can use Runestone magic to teleport all over Etheria. Maybe he’s found something similar.”

“Hmm…that is a possibility,” said Man-At-Arms, frowning as he set the device down. “Though that makes things more difficult. I could build something to counteract it if Hordak was using technology, but magic is out of my scope.”

“Maybe we could ask the Sorceress,” said Teela, walking over to the tank and tapping the glass with her knuckles; she jumped back when the thing inside twitched. “You two built the Mystic Wall together before Skeletor tore it down.”

“Maybe,” said Man-At-Arms, moving over to the chemical equipment. “But I would feel better know _how _Hordak is able to bypass our defenses.”

“I don’t think we should stay here for too long,” said Adora, giving up on reading the book and putting it back on the shelf. “Hordak might come back at any time and I don’t think a made-up code will get us out trespassing in his inner sanctum.”

“I hate to say it, father, but Adora might be right for once,” said Teela, which garnered a sharp “Hey!” from the blonde. “We should take everything we think might be related to Hordak’s new weapon and get out before we’re spotted.”

“That may be for the best,” said Man-At-Arms, picking up a glass ball filled with glowing-pink chemicals. “Grab what you can and move –

His remaining orders went unspoken when they heard a shimmering noise coming from the door and the air exploded into a glittery flash of light. Adora spun around on her heels when she was suddenly shoulder tackled in the chest and thrown back into the bookshelf, knocking several tomes out of place. Teela, on the other hand, back flipped next to her father, narrowly dodging the green laser that shattered one of the monitors on the wall. Teela whipped out her snake-headed staff at the same time Man-At-Arms pulled out his mace, staring across the room at Manteena, whose eyes were glowing bright green.

“How did they find us?” Teela gasped, ducking underneath Manteena’s optical lasers.

“The guards outside must have picked up on Adora’s lie,” said Man-At-Arms. He rolled out of the way of Manteena’s eye beam, tossing the glass ball he was holding, which exploded on the floor and splattered a gum-like substance everywhere. Unfortunately, Manteena had already jumped out of the way.

“Ugh, should have known better than to trust her with this,” Teela grimaced.

She lunged at the wide-eyed Horde general, swatting him with her staff, but Manteena grabbed the rod before it could hit. His eyes began to charge for another beam, but Teela punched him in the left eye, causing him toe flail back, screaming in pain, leaving him open for Man-At-Arms to run in and club him in the chest with his mace. The mutant general crashed into Hordak’s workbench, knocking several tools off the wall, one of which was a heavy-looking wrench that dropped squarely on Manteena’s forehead; the general’s large eyes rolled back and fell back on the floor with a groan.

“We can’t go blaming Adora for this,” said Man-At-Arms, frowning at his daughter. “She’s the reason we managed to get this far in the first place, so cut her a little slack.”

“You’re only being easy on her because she’s the princess,” Teela grumbled.

“That is not – “

His words were cut off when a glittery pink-white ball of light blasted him in the chest, throwing him back into Hordak’s chemistry table and knocking over several flasks, many of which created small holes in the metal floor. Thankfully, the Horde armor he was wearing had absorbed the brunt of the beam and he only suffered a mild headache as a result. The armor is very impressive, Man-At-Arms thought, looking over the charred, but mostly intact chest plate; he’ll need to examine it more back at his workshop, maybe use it to improve his own armor….

But his idea for upgraded armor would have to wait when Man-At-Arms looked up and saw his daughter going one-on-one with the assailant. They were shorter than Hordak’s usual generals, more human in appearance, and Man-At-Arms had definitely never heard of a Horde soldiers with glowing sparkle fists before. Whoever she was, Teela couldn’t land a single hit on her.

Every time the Amazonian warrior swiped and jabbed her staff, the new Horde Soldier would suddenly disappear in a shower of sparkles accompanied by a shimmering noise, then reappear in the same spot a second later. With every missed swing, Teela would get a little angrier, her teeth gritted furiously, and her form became sloppier. Teela, growling in frustration, lifted her staff above her head with both hand and slammed it down with all the strength she could muster. Predictably, the Horde soldier vanished and Teela put a dent in the metal floor. The Captain of the Guard shot her head up when she heard the shimmering noise coming from above, barely having a chance to look surprised before the Horde soldier dropped from the ceiling and punched Teela across the jaw. Teela staggered and her jaw was throbbing, but she was still standing…at least until the Horde soldier landed behind her and blasted Teela in the back with a ball of sparkle energy, sending the Master flying across the room into the steel wall.

“Teela!” Man-At-Arms cried.

Man-At-Arms threw his mace at the Horde soldier, knowing it would be ineffective against them because of their teleportation power, but he had to drag their attention away from his daughter. At least Man-At-Arms was able to predict the soldier’s next move and leaned to the side to dodge the surprise attack aimed for the back of his head. He grabbed the Horde soldier’s outstretched arm as they flew past, twisted around, and slammed them facedown into the floor, pulling their arm behind their back. The Horde soldier attempted to struggle, but Man-At-Arms was physically stronger than them.

“You have teleportation magic and I know I’ve seen that glow before,” Man-At-Arms spoke to the soldier. “You’re the one who transported the Horde’s forces past Kartaki’s force field. You’re Hordak’s secret weapon. Why? Who are you?”

The Horde soldier refused to answer and instead disappeared in a shower of sparkles, taking Man-At-Arms with them. They reappeared near the ceiling when Man-At-Arms suddenly realized he wasn’t on solid ground and released the Horde soldier in surprise as he fell. The Horde soldier pressed the advantage, spinning around in midair, and slamming Man-At-Arm’s across the face with their glowing fist, vaulting him back to the floor with an audible “OOF!” As Man-At-Arms rolled onto his side with a grimace, the Horde soldier landed properly on their feet with their fists glowing with energy. They took one step closer to the Master when they were suddenly distracted by a loud clattering noise coming from the other end of the lab.

Meanwhile with Adora, the blonde was soothing the throbbing spot on her head where her skull connected with the bookshelf and one of the heavy tomes fell on her. The Princess of Power slowly sat up when a long shadow loomed overhead and she stared up at the toothy face of Hordak’s other general, Leech.

“The Masters we foolish to send such a small group into Lord Hordak’s lair,” Leech said in his raspy voice. “Especially such a weak and pathetic little girl.”

“I’ll show you ‘little girl’,” Adora sneered. She reached into her armor pocket and whipped out a bejeweled pen. Leech tilted his head confused until the pen transformed into the Sword of Protection and jumped in surprise. “**_For the Honor of Grayskull!_**”

Leech shielded his eyes when the ‘weak little girl’ exploded in a flash of light. He lowered his hand when the light faded, only having a second to look before a muscular blonde woman in a tiara punched him across the face. The Horde general faltered a few paces, throwing out his suction-cupped hand to grab the wall and secure himself, shaking the stars out of his eyes. She-Ra packed more of a punch than most humans, but Leech had taken several blows from He-Man himself and the Princess of Power didn’t have nearly the same level of strength. She just caught him by surprise, that’s all!

Leech righted himself, unlatching his hand from the wall, and breathed a vicious snarl before rushing She-Ra. The buff goddess sidestepped his outstretched hand and punched him in the face again, making the general stumble sideways into the bookcase, knocking a few more books off the shelves. She-Ra followed up with a sharp jab to the shoulder and a quick kick to the gut, both of which made the reptilian veteran flinch yet didn’t fall. But when the Princess of Power took another swing, Leech blocked her with his suction-cupped hand and closed it around her fist. She-Ra tried pulling her arm back, but his hand was like a vacuum. She swung the Sword of Protection from the side, but Leech grabbed her by the wrist and held her in place.

She-Ra and Leech were now reduced to try and push one another in a contest of strength. She-Ra gritted her teeth, her muscles and tendons burning like wildfire in her arms. It annoyed She-Ra how she went from being the strongest warrior on one planet and was now equal to evil henchmen. Although, the longer the struggled continued, the more She-Ra began to realize that her body was suddenly feeling exhaustively heavy, her legs shaking, and her vision faded in and out. Before she knew it, the Princess of Power was down on one leg with her head bowed tiredly. Leech cackled somewhere above her.

“Looks like the Masters didn’t warn you,” Leech cackled. “I can drain the life force of anyone I touch, robbing them of their strength and vitality.”

“Really?” said She-Ra, raising her head and, to Leech’s surprise, grinned tiredly. “Thanks for sharing.”

Though her mind was in a haze, She-Ra willed the Sword of Protection to transform into, of all things, and bejeweled fork. The blonde goddess flipped the fork around and stabbed it into the back of Leech’s hand. And, amazingly enough, Leech ripped his hand away from her arm with a pathetic whimper. She-Ra immediately stabbed the Fork of Protection into Leech’s other hand, forcing the appropriately named general to release her fist and step back, shaking both his hands. The life-sucking monster shot She-Ra with a glare, but his heated gaze swiftly turned to panic as She-Ra transformed her fork into a jeweled war hammer and brought it down on top of his head. Leech slammed into the metal floor, which bent into a small crater from the impact, She-Ra’s hammer leaving a sizable bump on his head.

The Princess of Power transformed her sword back to its original state, leaning against it and panting from exhaustion.

“Hey…Duncun…,” She-Ra called out, pressing her forehead against the sword’s pommel. “Next time…a little heads up…about the bad guy’s powers…okay…?”

“She-Ra…behind you…,” Man-At-Arms grunted somewhere.

His warning came a little late when another sparkle bomb exploded against She-Ra’s shoulder. She-Ra used the Sword of Protection to brace herself to not fall over, though the sneak attack did sting worse than it should have; Leech had drained her quite a bit. She heard someone rushing at her from behind, but She-Ra turned sharply on her heel and swung the Sword of Protection back. Her opponent suddenly vanished with a shimmering sound – a sound Adora knew from somewhere – so her sword only hit empty air. But while Man-At-Arms and Teela were at a disadvantage, She-Ra had experience fighting against a teleporter in the past. So when she heard the shimmering noise coming from the side, She-Ra threw out her hand and grabbed her enemy by the collar when they materialized, dangling them off the ground.

“All right, wise guy,” She-Ra spoke firmly, turning on the soldier. “Tell us what you know about – GLIMMER?!”

She-Ra’s jaw dropped and unintentionally let the Horde soldier go, dropping them on the floor. At first Adora thought she was just imagining it, but a doubletake made her realize that her mind wasn’t playing tricks. Even wearing the colors of the Horde with the red bat symbol on her chest and the crimson jewel upon her crown, it was definitely Queen Glimmer; the glowing fists and the sparkly teleporting should have given it away soon. But while She-Ra was torn between joy and concern, Glimmer looked up at the Princess of Power with a look of pure loathing that was generally reserved for the Horde (and Catra on occasions).

“Glimmer? Glimmer, it’s me – Adora,” said She-Ra worriedly. She dropped the transformation and reverted back to Adora to emphasize her point. “I’ve been looking everywhere for you? What happened at Bright Moon? Where’s Bow and the others? What are you doing with the Hor – “

To Adora’s surprise, Glimmer lunged at her and punched her squarely in the face with her sparkly fist, knocking her flat on her back; the long _crack _and painful throbbing told Adora her nose was broken. Glimmer straddled Adora’s chest when she tried to sit up and tried punching her again, but Adora instinctively summoned the Shield of Protection and put it between herself at the queen. The sparkle queen cried out as her knuckle beat against the metal surface, leaning back and shaking her aching hand. Adora used the opportunity to return the favor and punch Glimmer in the face, throwing her flat on her back.

Hey, they might be friends, but isn’t taking any of Glimmer’s crap.

The Queen of Bright Moon rolled over on her knees, glaring at Adora, and started tossing glitter balls wildly at the Heroic Warriors. Adora raised the Shield of Protection and moved sideways to cover Teela as she helped Man-At-Arms to his feet. All three of them crouched behind the shield as Glimmer rose to her feet, increasing the number sparkle bombs, seemingly not caring that she was tearing apart Hordak’s private lab; she was just focused on getting to the heroes at any cost.

“Something’s wrong with Glimmer?” Adora told them, grunting each time the shield was struck. “She’s not in the right state of mind. She would never attack us like this.”

“Didn't you say she almost killed your fiancé and put a bounty on you,” Teela remarked.

“Well…yeah…but she’s not evil,” said Adora; Teela gave her a bland look. “Okay, so maybe she’s a little evil deep down, but she would never work for the Horde! She hates the Horde more than anyone else I know, and she would never wear their colors…even if they do look surprisingly good on her,” she mumbled the last part, glancing at her best friend over the top of the shield; dark colors really worked for her.

“Hordak must have cast a mind control spell magic to gain Queen Glimmer’s loyalty,” said Man-At-Arms, righting himself and lifting his mace. “And then he’s been using her Runestone magic to teleport his armies across the border.”

“We have to snap her out of it,” said Adora, now leaning sideways when Glimmer started throwing curveballs. “Maybe we have to hit her in the head to conk the magic out of her. That’s always works for the heroes in Bow’s books.”

“I’m afraid it’s not that simple,” said Man-At-Arms. He momentarily stepped out from behind Adora and swung his mace at one of the glitter bombs. The magic ball was ricocheted back at Glimmer, who teleported out of the way and reappeared two feet to the left. “Mind control is usually temporary, especially when the caster is far away. But the spell can be maintained if there’s something generating the same magic energy on victim’s person.”

“Since when are you a wizard, father?” Teela questioned as she tried to step out, but Glimmer shot a bomb at her feet, making her jump back.

“I’ve known the Sorceress for close to twenty-five years,” Man-At-Arms answered, batting another volley back at Glimmer, who once again teleported to safety. “I’ve learned a thing or two in my time.”

“So all we gotta do is find out whatever’s controlling her, right?” said Adora; her feet slid back a foot after deflected a strong beam from Glimmer.

“That might a little more difficult than you think,” said Teela.

The Amazonian hero pointed to the side of the laboratory with her staff where Manteena was slowly rising to all four of his feet, leaning against the workbench and leering at Adora and the Master’s, his eyes turning from bright-green to glowing yellow. The Horde general shot three blasts at the heroes, but Teela twirled her staff to deflect the shot to the ceiling, the floor, and the wall over Manteena’s shoulder. At the same time, Man-At-Arms batted another one of Glimmer’s magic bombs back at her when Leech suddenly threw out his hand, catching the ball within a foot of the sparkly queen’s face. He slurped the magic through his suction cup hands, his murky-green skin undulating up his arm, as he made a satisfied noise.

“Mmm, tasty,” he growled.

Adora, Teela, and Man-At-Arms stood back-to-back as the villains spread out; Glimmer in front with her shimmering fists, Manteena on their right with his glowing eyes, and Leech on the left with his expanding hands.

“Maybe now would be a good time to get She-Ra back out here,” Teela suggested.

“Yeah, probably a good idea,” Adora nodded. She shifted the shield to the Sword of Protection and raised it above her head. “**_For the Honor – _**“

“Not so fast!” Manteena hissed, shooting the girl with his optic blasts.

Teela tried to block the shots with her staff, but only managed to deflect one away while the other slipped underneath and pierced Adora’s side. Adora’s gasped as her body suddenly seized up, feeling like ten thousand volts of electricity was shooting through her nervous system. Then, she felt everything go numb and Adora dropped to the floor like a sack of bricks, the Sword of Protection held loosely in her fingers.

“Adora!” Teela gasped, kneeling to the princess’s side in concern.

“Don’t worry, she’s only stunned,” said Man-At-Arms reassuringly, moving in front of the girls protectively. “Though that puts us in a very difficult position.”

Teela flipped Adora around in her arms; her eyes were open, but they were wide with panic at the realization that she couldn’t move. Having been on the end of Manteena’s stun rays before, Teela knew it would wear off in a couple of minutes, but as she looked around the room, she knew they might not have that time. Glimmer, Manteena, and Leech were inching closer to them from all sides; they themselves were backed into a corner and a person down. The odds were stacked against them as they usually were. Man-At-Arms lifted his mace at the ready, staring down the villainous trio when –

** _BOOM!_ **

The wall behind Leech exploded without warming, shooting metal shrapnel at the general’s backside and throwing him to the floor with a frightened screech. Everyone turned to the wall together as the plume of black smoke filtered into the laboratory. The entire room went quiet, the heroes and villains staring apprehensively into the smokescreen…. Then two arrows shot out of the haze, flying toward Manteena and Glimmer, accurately hitting them in the chest and exploding into a pair of nets. Menteena shrieked in surprise, tripping over his four feet as he flailed around, and ended up smacking his face on Hordak’s workbench on the way down. Glimmer was dropped on the floor instantly, gritting her teeth frustratingly as she tried to rip the net apart with her bare hands.

Man-at-Arms and Teela looked dumbfounded at the generals flopping around like fish out of what, but snapped their heads back to the hole in the wall when they heard the loud footsteps coming from outside. A mysterious figure draped in a tattered brown cloak appeared from the smoke, his face concealed by a Horde-issued gas mask and armed with a gilded bow, a quiver of arrows strapped over his shoulder. Though when Adora rolled her eyes around to see the newcomer, her attention was generally more focused on the opening in the front of his cloak, which exposed his dark-skinned navel….

“No – freaking – way…,” Adora muttered astonishingly.

“Come with me if you want to not die a horribly painful death!” the mysterious savior said in an, obviously fake, deep voice.

“Well, when you put it that way, how can we say ‘no’,” said Teela sarcastically.

Teela threw the still limp Adora over her shoulder in a fireman’s carry, picking the Sword of Protection up off the ground, and ducked out of the room with Man-At-Arms guarding her back and the stranger bringing up the rear. Leech pushed himself off the ground when he realized the heroes were escaping and rushed them with an angry hiss. The mysterious archer nocked an arrow in his bow and shot it at the base of the wall. The arrow exploded on impact and a rubbery green goo expanded to fill the hole just before Leech reached it. The Horde general, unable to stop himself in time, bounced off the strange goop and was launched across the room, slamming into the opposite wall.

Glimmer finally got free when she remembered she could just teleport out of the net and Manteena did the same by blasting himself free with his optic lasers. Glimmer offered her hands to Manteena and Leech and together the three of them teleported into the hallway past the gooped up wall. But when they looked around the long corridor, the heroes and their cloaked rescuer were nowhere in sight.

“Find them before Hordak destroys us all!” Manteena screeched.

The wide-eyed mutant ran in one direction while Leech stomped the other way and Glimmer teleported somewhere else. None of them noticed one of the metal panels sliding sideways until it slid into place to match the rest. The space inside the walls was so cramped that they could only moved sideways, making it especially difficult for Man-At-Arms, Teela, and Adora to squeeze through because they were taller and broader than their new partner. Teela had twice as much difficulty because she had to drag Adora sideways by the arm while also dragging the Sword of Protection, which clanged repeatedly against the wall. Once or twice, she was afraid someone on the other side had heard them, but they quickly moved on.

“Thanks for getting us out of there, friend,” said Man-At-Arms thankfully.

“It was my pleasure,” said the stranger. “Any friend of Adora’s is a friend of mine.”

“So you know Adora then?” asked Teela, who gratefully noticed Adora twitching in her arms, slowly regaining motion in her body.

“We’ll talk once we’re somewhere safe,” said the stranger. “Down here….”

They squeezed themselves out of the narrow space and into what looked like an elevator shaft. The cloaked archer pulled out a pair of Horde-issued gloves, put them on, then jumped to grab the elevator cable and slid down into the darkness below. Man-At-Arms and Teela shared a look before Man-At-Arms relieved his daughter of the Sword of Protection so that she would have less to carry and followed the stranger’s example. Before Teela made the jump herself, she felt Adora stir in her arms and tentatively rose to her feet, massaging the back of her head with a weak groan.

“Hey, you okay?” Teela asked concerned.

“Yeah…yeah, I’m fine now,” Adora grunted, stretching her arms to shake the stiffness in them.

“Think your good to go down on your own?” asked Teela.

‘Yeah…this is no problem,” Adora said, grimacing as she cracked her neck. “Buuut…in case I die, make sure Catra doesn’t touch my stuff.”

“No promises,” said Teela, grinning.

Adora took a deep breath, collecting herself for a moment, before leaping over the edge and grabbing hold of the cable. There was a tense moment when her hand slipped, but she quickly snatched the cable with her other hand and slid down the elevator shaft; she heard Teela following close behind. They fell for what seemed like miles until Adora and Teela made it to the bottom where Man-At-Arms and the cloaked stranger were waiting for them. Man-At-Arms silently handed the Sword of Protection back to Adora, who transformed the weapons into its bracelet form to make it easier for travel.

The cloaked stranger approached the wall and pulled away another panel, revealing a small opening, and gestured them inside. The Heroic Warriors crouched through the hole with the stranger in the rear, pulling the panel back to conceal the entrance. Where they ended up was a large, doorless room piled high with junk and debris. Everywhere they looked, there was broken machine parts, worn out uniforms, ration bar wrappers, and bits and pieces of miscellaneous items. And Adora _really _didn’t want to know what the purplish-green puddle in the middle was.

“Nice place you got here,” said Teela sarcastically.

“It’s the Horde’s trash compactor,” said the stranger. “With as neat and tidy as everyone is, no one ever comes in here. Oh, but don’t worry about it turning on. Everything in the Horde runs on a tight schedule. The trash compactor doesn’t turn on until Wednesday at four P.M. sharp.”

“That’s good to know,” said Man-At-Arms. “Now that we’re safe for the moment, perhaps you can tell us a little about yourself, friend.”

“You want to know who I am?” the stranger said dramatically. “I am the scourge of the Horde on two worlds. The silent architect of their downfall. I am the one who haunts them in their darkest – “

“Can you please take that mask off, Bow, I can’t take you seriously when you look like that,” Adora said bluntly.

The cloaked stranger froze in mid-pose when the Princess of Power called him out. After a few seconds of stunned silence, her removed his cloak and mask, revealing the pouting face of one of Adora’s closest friends.

“Aw, how did you know it was me?” Bow whined.

“You’re the only guy I know who loves flashing his bellybutton in battle,” Adora answered with a teasing smirk.

The archer moaned childishly as he threw away his “disguise”; the dramatic effect effectively killed. Adora rolled her eyes good-naturedly, then strolled over and embraced her friend in the biggest hug she could manage, which he eagerly reciprocated, saying, “It’s good to see you again, Bow.”

“Good to see you, too,” said Bow, smiling, as they pulled away. “Man, I can’t believe we found each other. I was worried something might have happened after Entraptra’s machine went crazy.”

“Well, something did happen – good and bad,” said Adora. Then, remembering there were others with them, waved a hand to Teela and Man-At-Arms. “Bow, this is Teela and her father, Duncan. “Teela, Duncan, this is my friend, Bow.”

“A pleasure to meet you, son,” said Man-At-Arms, politely shaking had with the smaller man. Bow looked up at Duncan in admiration, but Adora thought it might have something to do with his mustache; Bow always wanted a mustache.

“So you’re the archer from Adora’s world, huh?” said Teela, looking him up and down. “I was expecting you to be…taller…stronger…and had at least a _little _facial hair.”

“Hey, I’m working on it!” Bow cried.

“Bow, we just saw Glimmer,” Adora informed, steering the conversation into a serious topic. Bow frowned with a knowing look. “She wasn’t acting herself. She’s working for Hordak, but she _hates _the Horde! Something is very wrong with her.”

“We believe that Hordak may be using some mind control spell on her,” said Man-At-Arms.

“You’re right,” Bow admitted, looking down sadly. “And it was my fault that Hordak got to Glimmer.”

“What happened after portal opened, Bow?” Adora asked, resting her hand comfortingly on her shoulder.

“Well…it’s a long story,” said Bow. He moved back and sat town on what looked to be the broken tread of a Horde tank. “It all started back in Bright Moon when Entrapta activated the portal….”

* * *

Meanwhile, in Hordak’s throne room, the leader of the villainous army emitted a low growl in the back of his throat as he leered at the tablet projecting the image of Manteena, who was cowering under his master’s gaze. Evil-Lyn was standing at his right side as usual, looking very pleased with herself despite the news Manteena delivered.

“You – _lost _– them!” Hordak snarled savagely; Manteena squeaked fretfully.

“It – it’s only a temporary setback, Lord Hordak!” Manteena yelped. “The entire city is on high alert and none of the guards on the boarders have spotted anyone leaving! Leech ordered a complete lockdown of the zone so the Masters can’t use the armor they stole to sneak back out!”

“I don’t want excuses – I want results!” Hordak sneered, snorting between words. “You had better find them before _I _come looking for _you_!”

He watched Manteena’s wide-eyed face contort in fear one last time before he crushed the tablet in his fist.

“Sounds like your generals aren’t doing so well,” said Evil-Lyn haughtily. “It’s a wonder how they can lead your armies if they can’t even handle a few rats in the walls.”

“If you’re so confident, then perhaps _you _should help them search as well,” Hordak sneered, glaring at the sorceress. For her part, Evil-Lyn managed to hide her fear well, though her hand was shaking slightly, glancing at the scorch mark on the floor that was once Colonel Blast. “Find the Masters and bring them to me, or you and my generals will know suffering beyond your darkest nightmares.”

“…as you wish, my lord,” Evil-Lyn spoke hesitantly with a deep bow.

Hordak watched his right hand leave the chamber with narrowed eyes until the door automatically closed behind her. Then, with a low growl, he turned his head slightly to the left and peered over his shoulder, saying, “You are either very brave or very foolish to intrude upon my sanctum, witch.”

The shadows in the corner seemed to come alive at his words as they rose from the floor in dark tendrils, warping and twisting together until they formed a solid shape. The darkness slowly rolled as the malevolent form of Shadow Weaver casually strolled to the middle of the chamber; the Crystal of the Crimson Countess glimmering powerfully upon her mask.

“Very impressive,” said Shadow Weaver in her soft yet menacing tone. “The other Hordak would never have noticed my presence like you did. Then again, he was a failure that could never hope to match Horde Prime’s greatness. Or yours.”

“You’re trying to appease me with flattery and the mentioning of my creator – like a leech,” said Hordak disdainfully with a powerful snort. “The only reason I haven’t destroyed you where you stand is because I know you want something and I am curious to know what it is.”

“Very astute, Lord Hordak,” said Shadow Weaver. “But ah…I have not come for my own reasons. Rather, I have come at the behest of my master, Skeletor.”

“Skeletor is your master?” said Hordak with a tone of interest. He strode over and seated himself upon his throne, leering down at Shadow Weaver with his head on his fist. “That swine has betrayed me many times, even after I saved his wretched life and granted him his new name. So the question I must ask now is, why should I concern myself with anything Skeletor has to say?”

“Oh, trust me, my lord?” said Shadow Weaver conspiratorially. “You’re going to want to hear this….”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let’s be honest, Teela is the type that can hold a grudge for a long time, and will never stop giving Adora a hard time, even if she is Adam’s sister. It’s not that she doesn’t like Adora – she appreciates her as a great warrior and a good friend – but Teela is very protective of Adam and doesn’t appreciate Adora’s lack of discretion that resulted in Adam’s biggest secret being revealed to the whole world. As a Master and Captain of the Guard, she mostly sees Adora as a security risk that needs constant supervision.
> 
> I had initially only intended to do a one parter with the Hordak chapter like I did with King Hiss, but there is so much to explore with Eternia’s Hordak and his minions that I wanted to give them a little extra screen time to flesh them out since we were robbed of a third season in the 200X series. I also thought about ending the chapter with Glimmer staying as Hordak’s mind-controlled slave as an ironic plot twist to the show (Glimmer being the bad guy and Catra being the good guy), but I chose not to because then we would be missing out on all the Catra-Glimmer snark and banter. Because let’s face it: everyone else is either too nice or an easy target for Catra’s wit and sarcasm. Glimmer’s the only one not afraid to get up in Catra’s face and bite back.
> 
> So yeah, there will now be a second part, so be patient and look forward to next time.


	8. All That Glitters, Part 2

The village of Viridas was once again in a state of heavy repair of after the three giants (Azdar, Belzar, and Chadaz) made another attempt to steal the Crystal of Prasinus, the magic gem that made the village’s crops ripe and delicious greater than any other on Eternia. Of course, after the giants’ first attack, the Masters of the Universe had set up a defense grid that successfully repelled the invaders, but not without a lot of collateral damage. Though their village was spared, many of Viridas’s people were still concerned about the alarming rate of villain attacks all over Eternia. Attacks that started sprouting up when that mysterious colorful planet appeared over their heads…and the new guests that crash landed out in the fields.

A crew of mason workers were in the process of filling up the holes in the crystal’s tower, though hauling a bunch of bricks and mortar to the top of a rickety scaffolding did not seem like the best idea. A fact that was quickly proven when one of the workers took a step too close to the material and their combined weight caused the wooden platform underneath his feet to break. The mason worked screamed as he fell backward, flailing his arm around like windmills, the building material flying around him as he plummeted thirty feet toward the ground. Just as he was about to become a splatter on the ground, a flash of sparkles exploded in the air beside him as he felt a pair of arms wrap around his midsection. Another flash later and they were gone.

The building materials smashed into the road, making the pedestrians scramble to get out of the way, but the mason worker was not seen among the debris. That was because he had popped up across the street in a burst of sparkles, safely on his knees albeit hyperventilating. And standing next to him, with fists on her hips in a heroic pose, was Queen Glimmer of Bright Moon, smiling proudly as the crowd showed her in applause.

“Thank you, thank you, you’re too kind!” said Glimmer with her best queenly hand wave. She looked down at the worker, who was still hyperventilating. “You should learn to be more careful, citizen! Not everyone has super awesome magical powers like me! But don’t worry! I will assist you!”

And on that note, Glimmer popped away in another sparkle shower, only to reappear again around the fallen debris. The villagers gathered around the scene in awe as the Etherian queen popped back and forth among the wreckage, gathering all the salvageable material and stacking it neatly into one pile. And when all the supplies were collected, she teleported all of them back onto the scaffolding, but this time separating them into smaller piles so the weight could be distributed evenly. She teleported back to the ground, bowing theatrically to another round of cheers, and then popped away.

But the heroic deeds of Queen Glimmer didn’t end there!

Up and down Viridas, Glimmer would heroically appear to aid anyone in need. Whether it was helping an old lady carry groceries to her house (which took six ‘poofs’ because she couldn’t remember where her house was) or helping a family’s pet grizzly bear out of a tree (“Why do you have a pet bear?” Glimmer cried as the ursine snapped its massive teeth near her face). And every time, Glimmer would take a moment bask in the cheers of the villagers every time she ‘poofed’ away. According to the villagers, magic like hers was a rare talent and very few magic-users in general were good guys. That just made the people love Glimmer even more.

Glimmer couldn’t get enough of it.

As the Queen of Bright Moon popped through the streets with child-like glee, she spotted something in her peripheral and came to a full stop.

Through the curtained entrance of a local junk shop – or at least Glimmer thought it looked like a junk shop – Bow was examining a weird electronic board as thin as a sheet of paper and covered in all sorts of tiny doohickeys. Glimmer wasn’t entirely sure, but she thinks Entrapta once called it a…’circus board’ or something along those lines. Honestly, no one outside of Bow or Catra seemed to even understand a quarter of what that hyperactive tech nerd said. Either way, Bow was flipping the ‘circus board’ with a critical eye, rubbing his chin that Glimmer he only did to make himself _look _smarter. It was kinda cute, Glimmer thought.

With a mischievous grin, Glimmer silent ‘poofed’ behind Bow and grabbed him by the shoulders, shouting, “Hey, Bow!”

As expected, the dark-skinned archer let out that girlish scream that Glimmer thought was adorable and threw the ‘circus board’ in the air with a start. Bow realized what he had done and fumbled his hands to catch the piece of tech, letting out a relieved sigh when he grabbed it before it could hit the ground. The archer turned on her swiftly and glared, to which Glimmer only smiled and waved playfully.

“Don’t sneak up on me like that!” said Bow, holding up the electronic. “You almost made me drop this, and I have no idea if they take Etherian money!”

“Sorry, couldn’t resist,” said Glimmer with a snort. Bow sighed and shook his head. “So, what’re you’re you doing looking at all this junk?”

“Junk?” Bow gasped like Glimmer had committed some cardinal sin, hugging the ‘circus board’ close to his chest. “Glimmer, do you understand what this is?”

“…Junk?” Glimmer repeated, shrugging.

“Glimmer, this is Eternian technology,” Bow said importantly, holding out the board in emphasis. “Some of the most advanced technology I’ve ever seen outside Entrapta’s lab. This one little circuit board – “

“So that’s what it’s called,” Glimmer muttered.

“ – could has enough processing power to make half a dozen Emilys,” Bow continued uninterrupted. “And that’s not all. I noticed that a lot of the tech around here has some similar designs as the First One’s tech from Mara’s ship in the Crimson Waste and the Crystal Castle in the Whispering Woods. Except for, you know, they’re not actually crystals. But that’s beside the point! The designs are so similar that I think Eternia and the First Ones might one and the same. We might have accidentally crash landed on the First One’s homeworld!”

“Are you sure?” Glimmer asked with a raised brow. She poked her head back outside, noting how unremarkable the village looked. “I always thought the First One’s homeworld would be a lot more…science-y.”

“Maybe something happened that cause the First Ones to retrograde back into their current condition,” said Bow, stroking his chin again; Glimmer snorted behind her hand. “They have the technology available, but most of the people don’t seem to know how to use it the way they should. I wonder what could’ve happened…”

“Eh, it’s probably nothing,” said Glimmer flippantly; Bow frowned. “Anyway, wait’ll you hear all the stuff I did today! First I teleported a drowning whale out of the ocean, which is really weird because I thought whales lived in the ocean. Then I teleported caravan of traders to the next village and the bandits waiting for them were completely clueless! Then I teleported –

“Glimmer,” Bow cut her off, grabbing her by the shoulder. “Don’t you think you’re going a little overboard with this whole ‘teleporting superhero’ business?”

“What? I’m just using my super awesome amazing powers to help people,” said Glimmer.

“And that’s great, but…,” Bow hesitated, trying to find the right words. “I just think you should be a little more…cautious about using your powers. You might be exposing yourself a little too much and drawing unnecessary attention.”

“What’s unnecessary about a little attention?” asked Glimmer, frowning. “The people love it when I use my powers. Every time I ‘poof’ somewhere, every always cheers for me. Check it out.” To prove her point, Glimmer disappeared in a burst of sparkles and teleported two feet to the left. As if waiting for their cue, the crowd outside the shop cheered and whistled for Glimmer, who gracefully bowed. “You see. The crowd can’t get enough of it.”

“First off, that makes you look like an attention-seeking glory hound,” said Bow. “And second of all, I’m not saying you shouldn’t use it to help people when they really need it. I just think you shouldn’t go broadcasting your powers to the whole world. We don’t know anything about Eternia. I heard some villagers talking about ‘The Evil Warriors’ and ‘The Snake Men’ a lot and they sound like some really bad guys who would love to get their hands on your powers. We should try to keep a low profile until we can figure out what happened to Adora and the others.”

“Pssh, you’re such a worrywart,” Glimmer scoffed dismissively, much to Bows chagrin. “I’m a super powerful queen whose also the daughter of Etheria’s greatest mage and an angelic being. I’m probably the strongest person on this entire planet.”

“I’m pretty sure your not,” Bow said, running a hand through his hair exasperatedly. “Glimmer, please, just try to be careful, all right?”

“C’mon, Bow, what’s the worst that could happen?” said Glimmer nonchalantly.

“Why would you say that,” Bow groaned into his hands. “You know nothing good ever happens when you say stuff like that.”

“That’s not true – “

“Help! Somebody, _HELP!_”

Glimmer blinked owlishly; Bow was giving her the patented _I-told-you-so_ look. Glimmer groaned in a fashion not to dissimilar to Mermista before grabbed the boy’s arm and ‘poofing’ them away.

They appeared in a shower of sparkles on the street, which Bow considered unnecessary since they literally only moved five feet. They saw a woman covered in a tattered cloak running frantically down the road, screaming for help, until she tripped on the edge of her robe and tumbled to the ground at Bow and Glimmer’s feet. Bow, being the courteous boy that he was, kneeled down and helped the woman to her knees while Glimmer stood over them.

Are you okay, ma’am?” Bow asked politely.

“What’s wrong?” Glimmer said quickly. “Why were you running.”

“It’s…it’s the Evil Horde!” the woman sputtered hysterically, shaking Bow by the shoulders. “They’re headed this way!”

“The Horde is here, too?!” shouted Bow, surprised by the information. He had no idea that Horde Prime’s influence had reached this world.

Glimmer, on the other hand, ‘poofed’ away the instant she heard ‘Horde’ and reappeared at the top of the crystal tower, a hand above her eyes as she narrowed them into focus on the distant hillside. Two vehicles that looked like advanced versions of Etherian skiffs were carrying a small squadron of twenty-to-thirty soldiers dressed in sleek, silver armor with pronounced red bat emblems on their chests were soaring toward Viridas. It was a standard invasion party – just enough soldiers to assault a medium-sized town without expecting too much resistance from the populace.

Glimmer smirked confidently. They were in for a rude awakening, she thought.

“Glimmer!” The Queen of Bright Moon stared down at the ground; Bow was shouting up at her. “Whaddya see?!”

“It’s definitely Horde soldiers! Just a little different from the ones on Etheria!” Glimmer yelled back. “It’s a pretty small group! I’ll take them out in no time!”

“Glimmer, don’t do anything reckless!” Bow called back. “I think we should – “ But the sparkling royalty had already ‘poofed’ away; Bow hanged his head with a groan. “Why does she always have to be so stubborn?”

The Horde soldiers were approaching the border of Viridas, flying over the patches of farmland, the exhaust from their skiffs spraying bits of fruits and vegetables in their wake. The soldiers were gearing themselves up for the approaching invasion, donning their helmets and doing a final check over their weapons. They could see the Crystal of Prasinus glittering in the distance. And quite fortune for them, Man-At-Arms defensive measures haven’t kicked in yet.

“The intel was accurate!” said a soldier wearing a Force Captain’s badge. “Their defensive grid is still offline after the recent giant attack! They’re completely defenseless! Hah! We’ll be back home before – “

His words got caught in his throat when a shower of sparkles exploded in his face and the Force Captain flailed backward in a fright. Glimmer stood on top of the skiff controls with a confident smirk and her hands on her hips as she looked down as the dozen or so soldiers staring up at her dumbfounded. After a few seconds, the Force Captain snapped out of his stupor, pointed at Glimmer, and shouted, “Don’t stand there like a bunch of slack-jawed idiots! Attack!”

The Horde soldiers immediately jumped out of their seats and took aim of the queen. In response, Glimmer reached down and turned the steering mechanism to the right, causing the skiff to turn sharply in the same direction and threw the majority of the soldiers on their backs. The flying vehicle flew toward the other skiff and, before they crashed, Glimmer quickly ‘poofed’ away. The two skiffs collided – one was split in half while the front end of the second was flatten like a pancake – both crashing into the ground and flinging the soldiers into a nearby pumpkin patch.

Two dozen soldiers lay splattered everywhere, moaning painfully, their once sleek armor now covered in dirt and pumpkin guts. They started picking themselves up and a few of them checked the condition of their weapons – two or three rifles were clogged with pumpkin guts and thereby useless. But as one soldier rose to his feet, holding his throbbing head, Queen Glimmer suddenly dropped down above him and stomped him face first back in the dirt. He didn’t get back up again.

The other soldiers spotted her immediately; one of them let out a terrified squeal. Glimmer jumped off the fallen Horde soldier and turned to the rest with a cocky grin and a _bring-it-on _gesture. Someone in the background gave the order to fire and the Horde soldiers turned their rifles on her, but the Bright Moon royal had already ‘poofed’ away.

What happened next could only be described as a one-sided beatdown.

The Horde soldiers were unloading their entire magazines, but Glimmer effortless teleported out of the way that she actually stopped and taunted them with a fake yawn. And when she decided to switch to the offensive, Glimmer ‘poofed’ right up to a Horde soldier’s face, gave them a smile and a wink, and punched their face so hard the visor of their helmet shattered as they fell to the ground. She then teleported to the opposite side of the battlefield, blasting two soldiers in the chest with her sparkle beams and sent them flying. She bounced over to the other side of the patch again, landing on a Horde soldier’s back and knocked him flat on his face with grabbing his arm and pulling it behind his back, twisting the limb painfully. And every time the soldiers thought they could get a lock on her, the Queen of Bright Moon would blink somewhere else and take out another of their numbers.

Five minutes later, Glimmer clapped her hands clean of dirt and smirked at the bodies of the defeated Horde soldier writhing in the dirt in pain.

“So much for the big bad Horde,” said Glimmer haughtily. “They went down as easy as the Etherian version. Bow was worried for – **_GAAAAH!_**”

A wave of purple electricity struck the Bright Moon queen from behind, coursing painfully through every cell in her body until she fell forward and landed face first in the dirt, unconscious. The attacker was the hooded woman who had warned Glimmer of the imminent attack, wielding a clawed staff with a purple crystal ball. The woman pulled back her hood, revealing the smirking face of Evil-Lyn.

“So much power, so much arrogance,” said Evil-Lyn with a taunting chuckle. “Lord Hordak heard tales of a girl with the power of teleportation and it appears those tales were true. But for such power to be wasted on an egotistical child…. But do not worry, little one,” she kneeled down, brushing back a loose strand of Glimmer’s hair in a faux maternal manner. “Lord Horde will put you to proper use.”

The evil witch stood up and walked across the ruined pumpkin patch until she stood in front of the soldier bearing the Force Captain’s badge. The soldier, for his part, quickly scrambled to his feet and gave her a crisp salute.

“Call another transport and have the child loaded up immediately,” Evil-Lyn commanded. “Lord Hordak wants the girl in his citadel by day’s end and it would do well to make him wait, Force Captain.”

“Ma’am, yes, ma’am!” the Force Captain yelled, then spun around to the other soldier. “You heard the general! Get off your butts and move it!”

The Horde soldiers scrambled like a flock of chickens with their heads cut off, at least two of them running into each other when they weren’t looking; Evil-Lyn pressed her hand into her face with an exasperated sigh. Useless, Evil-Lyn thought, the whole lot of them….

Back in the village, Bow had climbed to the top of the crystal tower and had been watching the entire battle through his homemade binoculars. At first, he had been relieved to watch Glimmer trounce the Horde soldiers effortlessly, though admittedly conceited. That relief quickly turned to panic as he watched the hooded woman electrocute him best friend and appeared to be giving orders to the Horde soldiers. She was working with the Horde!

Bow lowered the binoculars after watching the soldiers restrain Glimmer with a concerned frown.

“Hold on, Glimmer, I’m coming for you,” he muttered softly.

* * *

“And that’s how Glimmer got captured,” Bow concluded. He was sitting on a broken tank tread in the Horde’s trash compactor while Adora, Teela, and Man-At-Arms sat on pieces of broken machines around him, listening to his story. “I borrowed a sky sled from one of the villagers and used it to follow the convoy to the Horde’s main base. I managed to steal the uniform off an outpost guard and sneak inside. I’ve went underground ever since.”

“Guess great minds think alike, huh?” said Adora, gesturing to the discarded Horde uniforms off to the side.

“So that explains how your friend got captured and why you’re hiding out in this dump,” said Teela, kicking a loose screw when said ‘dump’. “But that doesn’t explain why she’s suddenly changed sides for Hordak.”

“It’s not Glimmer’s fault!” Bow yelled anxiously. “It’s that weird gem on her head! One time, when I was sneaking through the vents into Hordak’s inner sanctum, I saw Glimmer talking back to Hordak until he touched that gem on her heads. She went super quiet after that. I think it has some kind of obedience spell on it.”

“Bet Angella wished she had something like that during the war,” Adora joked.

“If that gem is the source of Hordak’s control,” said Man-At-Arms, stroking his incredible mustache thoughtfully, “then the obvious solution would be to destroy it. Not only to free your friend, but also to take out Hordak’s best weapon against Eternia. He won’t be able to pull anymore surprise without Queen Glimmer’s magic.”

“That’s a good idea, father, but there’s still one major problem,” said Teela. “That girl can teleport anywhere at any time. It’ll be next to impossible to get her to sit still long enough for us to grab that jewel off her head. And even if we somehow managed to get ahold of her, who’s to say she won’t drop us into the mouth of Mount V’ranthrum?”

“Hmm, that’s a good point,” Man-At-Arms hummed. “Well, if we can’t grab her, then we’ll have to find a way to remove the gem from a distance. But I don’t know how we can do that without hurting the queen. My cannon isn’t exactly made for pinpoint precision.”

“Bow can do it!” Adora suggested immediately. “He has the sharpest aim of anyone I know. He once shot an arrow through a gap in a Horde tank two inches wide from twenty feet away. He’s the greatest marksmen of all time.”

“Aw, no I’m not,” Bow said bashfully. “Okay, maybe I’m a _little _good.”

“If Adora thinks you have what it takes, then I have faith in you, son,” said Man-At-Arms, clapping Bow’s shoulder. Bow looked at Man-At-Arms in momentary awe; probably because he liked Duncan’s mustache, Adora thought. “The next step will be to draw out Queen Glimmer and distract her long enough for Bow to take the shot.”

“She won’t be alone,” said Teela. “Leech and Manteena are probably still with her.”

“After what that Leech guy did to She-Ra,” said Adora, flexing her hand with a grimace, “I’m not looking forward to a second round with him.”

“They had the element of surprise last time,” said Teela, standing up with her cobra staff extended. “We know what to expect now.”

“Even so, I would feel much better _we _were in control of the playing field this time,” said Man-At-Arms. “What we need is some way of assuring that Queen Glimmer won’t be able to escape when we try to break the mind control gem. Or worse, deliver us to Hordak.”

“Weeeell…,” said Bow in a singsong voice. “I might have an idea.”

Adora, Teela, and Man-At-Arms leaned in curiously.

* * *

A couple of Horde soldiers were waiting for the elevator, talking about the latest fashion craze going on in sector D6 (“They’re putting tiger stripes on their helmets! _Tiger stripes!_) when the double doors opened. They didn’t have a chance to scream before Leech lifted them off the ground by their heads with his suction cup hands, an agitated scowl on his beastly face. He waited until their bodies went still and tossed them into the walls before stomping down the corridor. When he approached a T-intersection, a Horde guard suddenly flew into the wall from the hallway to his right and fell to the floor, motionless. Manteena scuttled into view and glared at Leech with his bulbous yellow eyes.

“Have you found them yet?” Manteena hissed.

“Does it look like I found them?” Leech retorted, motioning with his empty hands.

“Grr…where did the weapon run off to?” said Manteena impatiently.

Not a moment later, Glimmer popped in front of Manteena and Leech in an explosion of sparkles, making the generals jump.

“Don’t do that!” Manteena snarled.

“Have you found anything?” Leech questioned Glimmer, ignoring his irate comrade. Glimmer shook her head slowly; Leech slammed his fist in the wall, denting it. “Damn those Masters to the deepest depths of Despondos! They couldn’t have gotten far!”

“I suggest you learn to reign in your temper, Leech; Hordak won’t be happy if you break his citadel.” Manteena and Leech scowled as Evil-Lyn sauntered from the other corridor, seemingly enjoying their frustration. “You two are pathetic. The mighty generals of the Evil Horde can’t even scrounge up a few rats.”

“They way I remember it, _you _brought one of those rats in from Viridas,” hissed Manteena, pointing an accusing finger at the witch, who did not appreciate the gesture. “This is as much your fault as anyone else’s.”

“_I_ brought Hordak the most powerful weapon in his army,” Evil-Lyn retorted, waving her scepter to Glimmer. “What have you brought to the table recently? One failure after another? If anything, it’s your fault for not training your soldiers well enough to capture one skinny boy with a bow and arrow!”

“You think just because Hordak made you his second-in-command that you know how to raise an army?” Manteena sneered, getting up in Evil-Lyn’s face.

“Better than you ever could,” said Evil-Lyn, pushing him back with her scepter and a disgusted look. “I lead the Evil Warriors at Skeletor’s side, deceived his long enough to free King Hiss and his Snake Men, and fooled him into giving me a second chance until I released Hordak from his prison. Obviously, I am the superior choice to be at Lord Hordak’s side.”

“Or it could be that he keeps you close because you are an untrustworthy piece of slime,” said Leech with a mocking chuckle.

Evil-Lyn narrowed her eyes darkly at him.

The witch and the generals argue back and forth; their voices rising and becoming more heated with no end in sight. And the whole time, Glimmer stood off on the sidelines watching her captors fight with a blank expression…. That was until Glimmer’s eye twitched slightly and her fingers slowly curling into a fist. The quarrelling of the generals was sparking something inside the Queen of Bright Moon. After days of struggling, Glimmer could feel her senses returning to her. The sparkling queen slowly, shakily, began to lift her hand to her head –

Evil-Lyn suddenly jabbed her scepter in Glimmer’s face. The crystal ball glowed briefly and the crystal on Glimmer’s forehead flashed as well; Glimmer’s hand immediately dropped to her side; all resistance gone.

“The girl is starting to fight back again,” said Evil-Lyn with a thoughtful hum; Manteena and Leech watched her contemplatively. “Her power is extraordinary to be able to resist Hordak’s control, even if it is only for brief moments. My spell will keep her compliant for now, but she will need to be returned to Hordak soon.” She turned to the generals. “So why don’t you two stop wasting my time and find those wretched Masters?”

“Listen, witch,” Manteena snapped. “Unless you have a magic radar spell, I don’t want to hear a word from –

The bug-eyed general’s words were drowned out by an annoying ringing noise emanating from his pocket. Leech rolled his head with an exasperated groan and Evil-Lyn crossed her arms with a look that said ‘_really_?’ Manteena grumbled profanities under his breath as he pulled out his communicator and hissed, “What is it now?”

“**_General, this is command. Video surveillance has caught four non-personnel trespassing in Sector H-14. Facial recognition has identified two of them as Man-At-Arms and Teela of the Masters of the Universe. The other two are unknown._**”

“Sector H-14 is storage for the Horde’s tanks and skiffs,” Leech grunted. “That’s on the eastern boarder of the city. How did they get there so quickly?”

“Evil-Lyn’s rat probably knows all the shortcuts,” Manteena said pointedly; Evil-Lyn’s eyes narrowed on him. “They could be planning to make a run for it in one of the skiffs, or blast their way out with a tank….” He spoke directly into the communicator and said, “Command, have a squad deployed to the area immediately. Permission to kill on sight – “

But Evil-Lyn suddenly surged forward and snatched the communicator from his clawed fingers.

“Ignore that order!” she yelled quickly; the man on the other end sounded like he had jumped a good five feet. “This is Hordak’s second-in-command! I want soldiers to surround the area, but do not confront them! If anyone sets foot inside, I will personally drag them kicking and screaming to Lord Hordak!”

“**_Y-Yes, ma’am!_**”

“What was that all about?” Leech questioned as Evil-Lyn tossed the handheld back to Manteena.

“I know it’s difficult, but use your heads for once,” said Evil-Lyn nastily. “Lord Hordak gave us specific orders to capture the Masters ourselves. If anyone else is allowed to catch them, then what do you think Lord Hordak will do to us?” Manteena touched his neck like he could feel Hordak’s claw around his throat; Leech’s skin visibly paled. “Exactly. Lord Hordak has killed his generals for less, so let’s not give him a reason to do so again.”

“And what if this is a trap?” asked Leech. “For all we know, the Masters allowed themselves to be seen to lure us there.”

“Your concerns are touching, but unnecessary,” said Evil-Lyn with a mocking chuckle. The witch turned to Glimmer, caressing the queen’s cheek; Glimmer’s left eye twitched slightly at the touch. “As long as we have the weapon, the Masters stand no chance.”

* * *

Adora cautiously poked her head around the second-floor window with a grimace for the fourth time in the last fifteen minutes. Somewhere between fifty to sixty sleek armored Horde soldiers had surrounded the building from all sides, but none had approached them yet.

Days of hiding in the Horde City had allowed Bow to map the overall layout of the enemy territory. He had discovered a hidden drainage pipe which they had used to escape the citadel and traveled through the murky sewers underneath the Horde’s feet across the city. Now Adora understood why Mermista still nagged her their botched attempt to infiltrate the Fright Zone after Princess Prom: Sewers are horrible! The touch! The Smell! The…items…. Adora could crawl out fast enough when Bow opened up the manhole cover near the warehouse where the Horde stored their vehicles. There was only a minimum of two soldiers guarding the place – the rest must have run off when the lockdown started – so they dispatched them quick enough. Afterwards, Man-At-Arms hacked the electronic door and they all slipped inside.

None of them had noticed the security camera watching them from the building across.

Adora paced around the in another circle, passing Teela, who was sitting against the wall, polishing her staff with some wax they found on one of the shelves. She looked relaxed, but Adora knew she was keeping an ear open for any Horde movement outside. She walked by Bow and Man-At-Arms, the pair huddled over some makeshift device they had crafted from parts of the skiffs and tanks as well as some items Bow had brought from his hideaway. They were talking back and forth in rapid technojargon that Adora couldn’t understand for the life of her. Bow looked happy despite the circumstances going on outside; it wasn’t often he had a chance to talk tech with someone who could understand him (Entrapta didn’t count because she is, well, insane).

Adora walked by the window again, poking her head around the sill. Still no movement from the troops.

“Will you stop pacing already?” said Teela coolly, examining her staff. “You making me anxious.”

“And the small army of Horde soldiers outside aren’t?” said Adora. But she took a deep breath, leaned against the wall, and let out a long exhale. “I can’t believe they found us so quickly. How could we have been so careless?”

“It was always the plan to draw attention to ourselves,” said Man-At-Arms in a reassuring tone as he soldered the two wires Bow was holding in place. “We just did it sooner than we were anticipating. There’s nothing we can do for it now.”

“Hey, at least the Horde hasn’t started beating down the door yet,” Bow added optimistically, carefully inserting a small chip into the device. “That’s something, right?”

“Come to think of it, why haven’t they started attacking us yet?” Teela asked curiously. “They have the whole building surrounded.”

“Manteena and Leech likely gave the order not to let us escape, but not attack us either,” said Man-At-Arms with a concentrated look. “Hordak is not the most forgiving of bosses, and after their failure in his workshop, they’ll likely be sent to the firing squad if they go back to him empty-handed.”

“Guess all Hordak’s have something in common,” Adora mumbled under her breath.

Man-At-Arms closed the device they were working on and lifted it upright with Bow’s help, displaying their creation to the girls. It looked like a metal cylinder the size of Adora’s chest that had been haphazardly slapped together, which, in all fairness, it was. The exterior was made from slabs of steel they had pulled from the Horde tanks, jumbles of multicolored wires poked through the gaps, and the interface was made from a radio receiver. Adora didn’t see how something the two of them put together in under half an hour would be any help, but then again, she didn’t have an IQ of 200.

“Are you sure that thing will work, father?” Teela asked, rising to her feet. Adora was glad she wasn’t the only one thinking it. “Looks like it could blow up if you turn it on.”

“I admit it’s a bit of a rough design considering what we had to work with,” said Man-At-Arms, watching Bow fiddle with the radio. “But the science is sound, so it should be able to get the job done. You’re a clever young man, Bow. If we get out of here alive, I’d love to show you around my workshop sometime.”

“Really?!” Bow practically squealed, his eyes sparkling with glee.

“Well, you better hope your gadget works,” said Adora, poking her head back out the window with a frown. “Because the generals just showed up.”

Teela, Bow, and Man-At-Arms approached the window and cautiously peeked outside. As they expected, Leech and Manteena ‘poofed’ behind the line of Horde soldiers with Glimmer, but they also had the addition of Evil-Lyn with them. A bit unexpected, thought Adora, but it shouldn’t change the plan too much. The Princess of Power gave Man-At-Arms a quick look, who nodded in a silent agreement.

“Everyone in position,” Man-At-Arms commanded, bringing out his protective face plate and arm cannon.

Teela vaulted over the railing and dropped down to the first floor. Bow shot an arrow to the ceiling, letting it pull him into the rafters. Man-At-Arms picked up their device under his arm and ran to the back of the warehouse. Adora grabbed her bracelet, transforming it back into the Sword of Protection, and raised it above her as she shouted, “**_For the Honor of Grayskull!_**”

* * *

Evil-Lyn caught a glimpse of the light flashing from the second-floor window; proof that the Masters were holed up inside the facility. Leech approached one of the soldiers wearing a Force Captain’s badge; the man visibly trembled under the hulking general’s narrowed gazer, but had enough sense to salute him.

“Report, Force Captain,” Leech hissed.

“Yes, general,” the Force Captain nodded. “Four intruders were caught on video surveillance forty minutes ago, and was reported in two minutes later. As per Evil-Lyn’s orders, five squads have surrounded the facility, but have not yet engaged the enemy. Waiting for your orders, general.”

“Such a good little pet,” said Evil-Lyn mockingly; Leech scowled over his shoulder at her.

“Have your men on high alert, Force Captain,” Manteena interjected, scuttling past the pair toward the warehouse door. “Inform all Horde soldiers that no one is allowed in or out of the building without our permission. If the masters attempt to flee, you have permission to shoot them on sight.”

The Force Captain saluted once the order was given; Evil-Lyn rolled her eyes with an exasperated groan. The Horde generals approached the warehouse doors with Glimmer nipping at their heels, pausing briefly as Manteena fumbled to pull out the master key for the electronic lock on the door. The bug-eyed villain swiped the key, the lock beeped as it flashed from red to green, and Leech impatiently shoved his way past Manteena to go through the doors first. Manteena grumbled under his breath, especially when Evil-Lyn and Glimmer cut in front of him, making him the last to enter.

The door automatically shut behind them as the Horde villains (and Glimmer) looked around the warehouse. The facility was massive – it had to be to store the majority of the Horde’s war vehicles. At least three dozen skiffs were lined up in two rows on the left-hand side, and an even dozen heavily armored tanks were lined up against the right wall. A set of metal staircases on either side of the room led to the second floor where they kept shelves tools, spare parts, and controls to the winches. The warehouse was also deathly quiet; their footsteps echoed off the steel floor panels.

Leech lurched past the row of tanks, craning his head between each one, Manteena crept through the rows of skiffs, his eyes rolling back and forth, and Evil-Lyn pulled Glimmer along with her down the middle. For a moment, the wicked witch though she saw movement above, but it was only one of the mutated rats that liked to lurk in the dankest parts of the city.

Leech suddenly came to a stop in front of one of the tanks upon noticing that several plates of its armor were missing, as if someone had torn them out like pages from a notebook.

“One of the tanks has been sabotaged,” Leech announced to the others, poking his head underneath. “The armor has been ripped off.”

“This skiff has been tampered with as well,” Manteena hissed, leaning over the disabled vehicle, noting the destroyed panel and its exposed wires. “It looks like a lot of the electronic parts have been pulled out. They even took the whole radio.”

“Are they attempting to disable our forces?” asked Evil-Lyn, frowning.

“No, the others are untouched – it’s just these two,” answered Manteena, craning his neck to inspect the neighboring skiff. “I think they were salvaging for parts.”

“For what?” said Evil-Lyn impatiently.

High above the villains, hidden in the shadows of the rafters, Bow leaned his heads cautiously over the edge, peering down to the ground floor. A deep frown formed on his lips when his eyes fell on Glimmer, her face completely devoid of all expression. He hated seeing her like this. But she won’t be for much longer….

The dark-skinned archer turned around on his tiptoes and waved to the back of the warehouse’s second floor. Man-At-Arms had been hidden behind a shelf of sheet metal with his and Bow’s invention tucked under his arm, waiting. He saw Bow’s signal, nodded quietly in response, and lifted the device to the warehouse’s back wall, where it instantly stuck to the metal like a powerful magnet. Since Bow had already set the frequency on the radio earlier, all Man-At-Arms had to do was flip the switch….

And with a sharp _click_, the makeshift device released a pulse of pinkish-white energy that spread across the surface of the wall in every direction at once. The energy field reached the edges and continued to crawl to the other walls, along the floor, and even covered the ceiling. Manteena, with his enhanced sight, was the first to notice as the pinkish-white field slithered under his feet; the bug-eyed general hopped on the nearest skiff, afraid it might suddenly zap him. Leech and Evil-Lyn also noticed the energy spreading underneath them, but they remained still and noticed that they were unharmed. Glimmer, on the other hand, felt a sharp shock in the back of her neck that made her flinch. The energy finally came together at the warehouse entrance, now completely covering the entire building in a translucent bubble.

“It’s a trap!” Manteena squealed.

“They have us surrounded!” Leech snarled.

“Correction: they have _you _trapped,” said Evil-Lyn before turning to Glimmer. “Get us out of here!”

Manteena and Leech howled furiously at the witch’s (predictable) treachery and charged then women. But Glimmer took Evil-Lyn by the hand and ‘poofed’ away in a cloud of sparkles just before the other generals jumped on top of them…. Neither of them got far as Evil-Lyn and Glimmer suddenly ‘poofed’ again at the warehouse wall and were thrown to the ground like they had run at it headfirst. Evil-Lyn held her head, attempting to sooth the painful throbbing, as Glimmer rose to her knees, holding her right shoulder with a hiss.

“What was that?” Evil Lyn snapped the queen. “I ordered you to take us away from here!”

Glimmer rose to her feet and turned to the wall with a blank look. She teleported again, but reappeared once again at the barrier and was throw backwards so hard she knocked Manteena off the skiff. The bug-eyed general hissed and shoved the Queen of Bright Moon.

“This barrier is interfering with the weapon’s powers,” Leech grunted, craning his head to look around.

“Now what do we do?” said Manteena.

Just then, a single arrow fell from the ceiling and stabbed the ground between the generals. The arrow exploded into a thick cloud of black smoke before the generals could move, choking them in the thick smog.

Leech stumbled his way out of the hazard, sweeping the smoke away with his arm, when a strand of golden rope shot out from between the tanks and went taut around his forearm. The reptile general blinked and stared before the rope pulled him sharply off his feet, flinging him forward. That’s when She-Ra appeared from behind the tank and stretched her arm out, clotheslining Leech as he flew into her. The life-sucking warrior flipped in the air and landed on his front with a dull _thud!_ While Leech was disoriented, She-Ra reached for the tank and dug her fingers underneath the armored plating and ripped a large slab of the metal away like tearing out of a page from a book. She moved Leech’s hands behind his back, folded the metal around them, and compressed the ends so that they were sealed tight. The last thing she wanted to do was be on the receiving end of those suction cup things again.

As She-Ra finished tying up the general, Manteena came scuttling around the tank, rubbing his claws against his watery eyes, then turned to notice the Princess of Power. Manteena sneered as his eyes shifted from yellow to green, energy beginning to build up inside. Just when the bug-eyed monster shot his green beams at She-Ra, Man-At-Arms dropped down from the second floor, landing between them, and popped open his round shield, and deflected the beams back into Manteena’s chest. The monstrous warrior went ridged; his entire body seized up. Man-At-Arms pulled out his mace and _slammed _it squarely across Manteena’s jaw, tossing him to the floor where his large eyes rolled back and his body went limp.

“Thanks for the save, Duncan,” Adora said appreciatively.

“Any time, Adora,” Man-At-Arms, shouldering his mace.

But then, a loud sucking sound like a vacuum filled the warehouse. She-Ra and Man-At arms came around the tank with their weapons raised as the smokescreen seemed to be pulled inward. A few seconds passed and Evil-Lyn appeared from the haze holding up her scepter, which was devouring the smoke, with Glimmer standing beside her with her fists glowing.

“So, this is the fabled She-Ra,” Evil-Lyn said, scoffing as she looked over the Princess of Power. “Not nearly as impressive as your brother. And…what exactly are you going for with that hideous unitard ensemble. Trying to make your enemies gouge their eyes out?”

“I didn’t pick it out myself!” She-Ra snapped, flushed with embarrassment.

“Hand over the queen, Evil-Lyn,” Man-At-Arms demanded with his cannon aimed at the witch.

“So this girl is a queen, is she?” said Evil-Lyn, glancing sideways smugly. “Well, that just makes her even more valuable. But if you want her so badly….” She pointed her scepter at the heroes. “Attack, my slave! And bring me the sword of She-Ra while you are at it!”

Glimmer lunged forward with her glowing fists. She didn’t make it more than a few steps before another arrow swooped into Glimmer’s field of vision. The cylindrical arrowhead burst open and swathed her in a fishing net. Somewhere in the rafters, Bow let out a loud “Whoo!” As Glimmer stumbled and flailed to the ground, Evil-Lyn’s eyes glowed an ominous shade of lavender as, crackles of purple electricity jumping around the orb of her scepter.

She turned her staff on She-Ra and Man-At-Arms; Duncan raised his round shield while Adora shifted her weapon into the Shield of Protection. But just before she could throw her first spell, Teela flipped over the skiff next to Evil-Lyn and slammed her snake-headed staff on top of the witch’s scepter. Evil-Lyn’s spell discharged at the floor under their feet, creating an explosion that blasted both women in opposite directions. Teela flipped in midair and landed on her feet with poise and grace, but Evil-Lyn turned and landed flat on her stomach with a painful “Ooh!”, her scepter clattering on the ground next to her.

Evil-Lyn shook her head free of the brief dizzy spell and reached for her staff when Teela’s foot came into view, making the witch pull her hand back. Teela’s staff pressed against the underside of Evil-Lyn’s chin, forcing her to look up at the smug faced woman.

“Not so tough when you’re on the receiving end of an ambush,” Teela said cockily.

Meanwhile, She-Ra walked over to Glimmer, who was fighting restlessly against the net. She grabbed the Queen of Bright Moon by the shoulders, forcing her to stay still.

“Just hang on, Glimmer,” said She-Ra. She was trying to reach for the jewel on Glimmer’s forehead, but her best friend kept shaking her head. “I’ll have you free in a moment if you just – stop – moving!”

Bow came down from the rafters on a rope, landing next to Man-At-Arms, and said cheerfully, “Yes! Our device worked! That was amazing!”

“Very well down, Bow,” Man-At-Arms complimented him with a pat on the back; Bow let out a soft squee. “Though I am curious. How did you know it would block her magic?”

“Glimmer and I’ve experimented with her powers ever since she first connected with the Moon Stone,” Bow explained proudly. “Since Glimmer’s magic is based on light, we did a lot of tests with the electromagnetic spectrum. It turns out that ultraviolet frequencies give off a wavelength almost identical to the Moon Stone, so they cancel each other out. As long as barrier is up, Glimmer can’t teleport out.”

“So that’s what happened,” said Evil-Lyn thoughtfully, reminded by Teela that there was a weapon to her throat. “So you’re saying the weapon can’t teleport _outside of_ this building, but she can teleport _inside_?”

Bow’s smile quickly dropped, a look of stunned realization on his face as he murmured, “Uh….”

Evil-Lyn grinned devilishly to Glimmer as She-Ra finally managed to hold the queen long enough to grasp the jewel between her fingers. Glimmer managed to catch the witch’s gaze out of the corner of her eye before understanding crossed her blank expression and 'poofed' out of sight in a show of sparkles, taking She-Ra with her.

Bow and the Masters looked around for them when She-Ra suddenly dropped from the ceiling and landed on one of the tank’s, creating a large dent in the armor plating. The Princess of Power groaned weakly as she sat up, blinking the stars out of her eyes, when a familiar net fell on her head. She looked up near the ceiling where Glimmer was hanging from one of the light fixtures until she 'poofed' away again. This time she appeared behind Bow and Man-At-Arms, blasting them in the back with her glitter bombs, then teleported in the air in front of Teela. She threw a punch at the woman’s face, but Teela managed to block the blow with the shaft of her weapon, pushing the Queen of Bright Moon back before taking a swing at her. Naturally, Glimmer teleported out of the way at the last second and reappeared on top of the skiffs. Glimmer pelted a dozen glitter bombs at Teela’s feet. The female Master gracefully flipped away from the volley and dived behind one of the Horde tanks, where she found Bow and Man-At-Arms taking cover.

“You couldn’t have come up with something to take her powers away completely?” Teela asked Bow, flinching as a glitter bomb exploded off the tank.

“I admit, that was my bad,” Bow said sheepishly.

Meanwhile, She-Ra shifted her weapon into the Shield of Protection and rushed her best friend. The glitter bombs deflected off She-Ra’s shield like water on a rock. The Princess of Power threw a right hook at Glimmer, but the sparkly queen 'poofed' away and instead smashed her fist through the skiff, completely tearing off the front end of the ship. She spun around and deflected a glitter bomb from the backside, being familiar with Glimmer’s fighting style, and reached out to grab the queen by the end of her cape before she could teleport away. She threw Glimmer to the ground, knocking the wind out of her, and made a grab for the mind control gem while she had the chance. Unfortunately, a purple energy blast struck her from the side and sent her crashing into a skiff.

Evil-Lyn held out her smoking scepter with a wicked grin until she caught something moving in her peripherals and swiped her staff to the side. A transparent purple shield formed in the air, absorbing Man-At-Arm’s lasers as the Master rolled into the open. Evil-Lyn dropped the shield and summoned a crackle of purple lightning from the tips of her free hand. Man-At-Arms rebounded the lightning off his shield into one of the tanks, blowing off the armor plating, and threw his mace at Evil-Lyn’s head in retaliation. The dark witch leaned sideways to dodge the mace with ease when she spotted Teela leaping of a nearby skiff, flying at her with staff raised overhead. Evil-Lyn blocked Teela’s weapon with her scepter, locking them into a stalemate.

“You were a fool to think you could sneak into Hordak’s sanctum unnoticed,” Evil-Lyn mocked. “You will not leave her alive.”

“Does you ever get tired of being wrong all the time?” Teela quipped.

Evil-Lyn made an ugly scowl as she shoved Teela away and started gathering magic into her scepter. A bolt of laser fire zoomed past Evil-Lyn’s face, narrowly missing her by inches, but made the wicked witch stumble back a few paces. Evil-Lyn a leer at Man-At-Arms, his hand cannon still smoking, and turned her scepter of the veteran. But Teela quickly swooped in, pulling Evil-Lyn’s arm while wrapping one foot around her leg, and performed into a perfect shoulder toss. Evil-Lyn slammed into the steel wall and fell unceremoniously to the ground, her scepter rolling out of her reach. The wicked witch briefly attempted to push herself up, but she fell back down with a weak moan and remained motionless.

“I had it handled that, father,” said Teela, pouting.

“I know you did, sweetheart,” said Man-At-Arms lightly.

Just then, a loud explosion went off in the back of the warehouse and both of them pivoted around swiftly.

She-Ra and Bow walked back into view; She-Ra raised her shield to deflect several balls of glittering light and Bow shot an arrow at the unseen enemy. Glimmer 'poofed' above She-Ra not long after and the threw a punch for her head, but the Princess of Power easily blocked with her arm and pushed Glimmer back. Glimmer landed on her feet and teleported away seconds before Bow’s arrows stabbed the ground where she once stood. The young archer barely had time to blink before Glimmer popped in front of him and grabbed Bow by the collar.

“Glimmer, stop!” Bow pleaded. “I don’t want to fight you!”

For a moment, Glimmer actually paused, staring at man with her face devoid of expression. Being up close with her, Bow noticed that her left eye was twitch like she was on the verge of a seizure, and he could feel the grip on his crop top slacken slightly –

Then She-Ra suddenly came up behind Glimmer and grabbed the sparkly queen in a powerful bear hug. Glimmer kicked her legs and shook her head like a rapid dog, but She-Ra did not relent. Giving up on fighting out of She-Ra’s grip, Glimmer shot a pair of concussive beams from her hands and propelled them backward into one of the Horde tanks. She-Ra’s hit the armor plating hard and unintentionally released her hold on Glimmer, allowing the Bright Moon queen to 'poof' a few feet away.

She-Ra dropped to her hand and knees with a grimace while Glimmer started charging for another concussive blast. Her attack was interrupted when a laser whizzed past her head. She jumped back and looked in the direction of Teela and Man-At-Arms as the father-daughter pair charged her. Glimmer teleported to meet them with sparkling fists.

She-Ra raised herself into a kneel, holding her head with a hiss, as Bow moved to her side.

“You okay?” he asked concerned.

“I’ve been hit harder,” She-Ra answered, raising herself to her feet. She watched distantly as Man-At-Arms and Teela jumped back and forth trying to keep up with Glimmer’s teleporting and glitter bombs. “I forgot how tough Glimmer is when she goes all out. We might have stopped her from leaving the building, but she can still run circles around us with her powers. How’re we supposed to save her if we can’t even catch her?”

“Maybe we don’t have to,” said Bow; She-Ra gave him a confused look. “When Glimmer grabbed me, she hesitated for just a moment, like she was trying to stop herself. Hordak touched that gem to make Glimmer obedient…. Maybe it needs to be recharged every so often!” He suddenly grabbed She-Ra’s shoulders and started shaking her enthusiastically. “That’s it, Adora! Hordak’s spell is wearing off and she’s fighting back!”

“That’s all good, Bow,” said She-Ra, prying his hands off. She watched Glimmer bounce off Man-At-Arms’ shield and shoulder tackled Teela. “But we can’t wait until the spell completely wears off. She could end up hurting Teela or Duncan.”

“I know,” said Bow as Glimmer blasted Man-At-Arms in the face, “but maybe we help her snap out of it.”

“What did you have in mind?” asked She-Ra.

Bow rubbed his chin is a would-be thoughtful expression while Glimmer teleported over Teela’s staff and kicked the woman in the face, throwing her on the ground. After a minute, Bow had an “Aha!” moment then cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted, “Hey, Glimmer! Catra found your diary stashed behind your dresser and told everyone about the Cupcake Incident!”

Glimmer “poofed” in the air behind Man-At-Arms and pulled back her sparkling fist to punch him in the back of the head. But then she visibly paused at Bow’s proclamation and he could see that her eyes immediately darted toward him. In her distraction, Man-At-Arms swiveled around and slammed her in the gut with his mace, sending the Bright Moon queen flying across the warehouse. Glimmer immediately picked herself up, her expression once again blank, and teleported away before Teela came down with her snake-headed staff.

Slightly surprised that Bow’s idea worked, She-Ra stepped up and followed his example:

“Glimmer! Your mom wants to know when she’s getting grandchildren!”

The Queen of Bright Moon popped up on a skiff and raised her hands ready to barrage them in glitter bombs. But at She-Ra’s declaration, Glimmer’s head instantly snapped her way, eyes popping in silent horror. Teela immediately lunged forward and jabbed her staff into Glimmer’s shoulder, causing the queen to drop her bomb at their feet. Teela jumped out of the way of the sparkly explosion, but when she looked back, Glimmer had already 'poofed' away.

“What are those two doing?” asked Teela, referring to the Etherians shouting seemingly random remarks.

“I don’t know, but it’s keeping Queen Glimmer distracted,” said Man-At-Arms, reloading his arm cannon as Glimmer popped up in front of them. “Let’s press the advantage while we can, but don’t harm her. Remember, she’s being controlled.”

“Easier said that done,” Teela remarked, twirling her staff behind her.

“It’s working,” said Bow as they watched Glimmer and Teela clash in the air. “She’s regaining control little by little. One good shock should snap her out of it.”

“Hmm…,” She-Ra hummed as Man-At-Arms blocked Glimmer’s concussion beam with his shield. “I think I might know something that could work…but it’s a little extreme.”

“Whatever it is, you might want to do it fast,” said Bow, wincing as Glimmer dropped Man-At-Arms from the ceiling.

The Princess of Power took a deep breath, steadying herself for what she was about to do. With a look of determination, She-Ra stepped forward a few paces as Glimmer teleported back and forth around Teela, jabbing the warrior woman in the ribs when her guard was open. She-Ra puffed out her chest and shouted with all her might:

“Glimmer, you won’t believe what happened? Catra and I broke up and aren’t getting married!”

But instead of catching the sparkly queen off guard, Glimmer seemed to be punching Teela more enthusiastically.

“Uh…I thought the whole point was to shock her, not make her happy,” said Bow uncertainly as he came up behind She-Ra.

“Wait for it…,” She-Ra muttered to him from the side. Then she shouted again, “The reason we broke up is…BECAUSE I’M ACTUALLY STRAIGHT!”

Glimmer had forced Teela to the ground on her back, standing on top of the female Master’s chest while summoning a massive ball of sparkling energy above her head. Just before she could bring it down on top of Teela’s head, She-Ra outrageous announcement reached Glimmer’s ears. The ball of energy instantly evaporated, the Queen of Bright Moon spinning around with her eyes practically popping out of her skull in a pose similar to Edvard Munch’s The Scream.

“You’re _WHAAAAAT!?_”

“That’s the part that shocks you?” said Teela incredulously.

“Never mind that; get the gem!” said Man-At-Arms.

Luckily, Bow was already on it. He dark-skinned archer knocked an arrow in his namesake the moment Glimmer paused to look around at She-Ra and released the drawstring to let it fly. Bow’s pinpoint accuracy shined through as the arrowhead hit the mind control gem squarely in the center, smashing the jewel to pieces. A pulse of shadowy energy blew out from the broken gemstone, but it faded harmlessly after a second. Glimmer staggered away from Teela, clutching her head with a dizzy moan.

“Ugh…what happened last night?” Glimmer muttered drunkenly.

“Wahoo! We did it!” Bow cheered.

“Nice shot, Bow!” She-Ra congratulated him with a high-five. Bow winced as their hands clapped.

“ADORA!” Glimmer screamed once she got her bearings. She instantly popped over to her best friends and started shaking She-Ra’s shoulders with a frenzied look in her eyes. “Adora, what happened?! When did you find out you were straight?! Does Catra know?! Does Mom know?! Oh god, how could this have happened – “

“Glimmer, Glimmer, relax!” She-Ra interrupted her raving with a humorous chuckle. “Relax, Glimmer. I am most definitely _not _straight. That was just something I said to snap you out of Hordak’s mind control.”

“Oh…oh, thank goodness,” said Glimmer with a relieved sigh. “I don’t know what I would have done if you had turned out to be straight.”

“What Glimmer means is,” Bow jumped in between them, smiling toothily. “We love you know matter what your orientation, right, Glimmer?”

“No,” Glimmer said automatically. Bow jabbed his elbow into her side. “OW! What was that for?”

“This has been…the weirdest mission I’ve ever been on,” said Teela as her father helped her to her feet.

“No argument there,” said Man-At-Arms, but looked at the Best Friend Squad with a kindly smile. “But I suppose all’s well that ends well.”

As the heroes celebrated their victory over the Horde and the reunion of best friends, Manteena stirred awake with a lethargic groan. The bug-eyed general raised himself onto his elbows and looked around. Leech was still facedown on the ground with his hands bound in steel and Evil-Lyn was slumped near the wall. His sight fell on Glimmer, but instead of attacking the Masters, she was smiling and laughing as She-Ra introduced her to Teela and Man-At-Arms. Teela must have sensed his gaze because the warrior woman snapped her head at Manteena just as the general whipped out his communicator frantically.

“Force Captain, this is General Manteena!” he shouted furiously before the Masters could move to stop him. “Have all troops move in on the targets! Shoot to kill!”

The warehouse instantly echoed with the sound of dozens of people shouting through the steel walls followed by a relentless pounding on the locked door.

“It’s time to go!” said Man-At-Arms.

“How’re going to get out?” asked Teela.

“Everyone, get close to me!” Glimmer commanded.

No one questioned the queen’s order as She-Ra, Bow, Teela, and Man-At-Arms huddled around Glimmer, everyone putting at least one hand on her arms and shoulders. Glimmer closed her eyes to concentrate on her destination. She didn’t know much about Eternia itself, but she knew Viridas well enough that she could picture the vegetable patches and crystal tower clearly in her mind. With her target selected, the heroes vanished in a shower of sparkles…. And fell from the ceiling a second later, feeling like they had run headfirst into a solid wall.

“…We forgot to take the barrier down, didn’t we?” She-Ra grimaced.

“Sorry, my bad,” Bow apologized. She knocked an arrow and shot it somewhere in the back of the warehouse. A crackling noise was heard soon after and the pinkish-white energy field on the walls faded. “Okay, now we can go.”

The heroes grabbed onto Glimmer once more and this time teleported away successfully.

* * *

To say that Hordak was displeased was a severe understatement – he was absolutely livid! The monstrous ruler of the Horde snarled like a savage animal at the new communication tablet in his claws. This time, it was Evil-Lyn on the screen with Manteena and Leech standing beside her, all of their heads bowed; Manteena was visibly shaking as if Hordak would reach through the screen and throttle him.

“You – worthless – _insects!_” Hordak snarled, snorting furiously. “Not only did you let the Master escape, but you also allowed them to take the weapon?!”

“Lord Hordak, you must understand – “ Evil-Lyn started, but Hordak cut her off.

“What I _understand _is that you three are a group of useless failures!” He howled, his claws digging into the tablet. “You had best hope I don’t find you, but when I do, you will experience pain unlike anything you have ever experienced! I won’t kill you, but I will have you begging for death!”

The evil lord of the Horde crushed the communication device in his claws before Evil-Lyn had the chance to respond.

“You really do seem to go through quite a lot of those, don’t you?”

Hordak leaned back against his throne, his fiery eyes narrowing on the shadowy sorceress standing by his side. Though her expression was hidden behind a mask, Hordak had the feeling that Shadow Weaver was almost gleeful throughout his general’s report.

“Do you want to anger me further than I already am, witch?” Hordak growled with a particularly strong snort. “Because I will turn you to cinders on the spot.”

“I’m sure you could, Lord Hordak,” Shadow Weaver spoke casually. “But I didn warn you that the Masters have grown more powerful, and now you have seen it for yourself. Before, you only had to contend with the might of He-Man and the technological forces of the Masters, but now they are gaining new powerful allies. She-Ra draws from the same source as He-Man and, as much as it pains me to say it, Catra is one of the cleverest soldiers I have ever encountered. And now they had added Queen Glimmer to their ranks. Things are not looking well for you, Lord Hordak.”

“You think I am threatened by them?” Hordak sneered.

“You should be,” said Shadow Weaver calmly. “Queen Glimmer was just the tip of the iceberg. There are others – Princesses of Power who can bend the primal forces of nature to their whims. And once word spreads that She-Ra and Queen Glimmer had allied themselves with the Masters, the other Princesses will follow suit. Your might is the greatest in all of Eternia, there is no doubt about that, Lord Hordak, but even you can’t fight against an army of that magnitude.”

Hordak folded his hands under chin, a soft growl emanating in the back of his throat as he stared into space. Shadow Weaver watched the display silently, but she could already see the gears working in the monster’s head.

“…And…what exactly does Skeletor have planned?” Hordak snorted after a long pause.

“Oh…you’ll see,” said Shadow Weaver with a delighted look in her eyes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The day Adora turns straight will be the day Shadow Weaver gives Catra a hug and acts like a decent human being.
> 
> Apologizes for getting this one out later than it should have. I found such inspiration with my other story and I completely pushed this off to the side until now. Hopefully I will be able to get the next one out sooner.
> 
> In the next chapter, it’s a day of festivity in Eternos as Adam and Adora celebrate their twentieth birthday together and Adora attends her first birthday party ever. The Masters of the Universe and the Best Friend Squad are on a mission to make this birthday the best one yet. But someone is moving in the background causing chaos in the Eternian palace. Catra is suspicious of who the troublemaker may be, but she sorely wishes she was wrong.


	9. Third Party

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Before you read this chapter, you should know that I have gone back and changed a few things in the previous chapters. Nothing to change the overall story, but stuff that will allow room for new ideas inspired Season 5 (or as I like to call it Catradora is finally canon, fuck yeah!)

Glimmer donned a serious expression; her eyes narrowed sternly, her elbows on the table, and her fingers steepled together. One look told everyone that she meant business.

She had gathered everyone she could that wasn’t part of the royal family to her quarters in the western wing of the Eternos. It was a nice room – not as bright or colorful as her old room on Etheria, but she wasn’t going to complain after King Randor graciously offered it to her despite what happened with Eternia’s version of Hordak. (The fact that there was another, scarier Hordak almost blew Glimmer’s mind as much as Adora being a literally princess of an entire planet rather than just having the title of one.) Glimmer waited until everyone was seated around the round table in the middle of her room (how and where she got it was a mystery for another time) and glanced around her gathered allies.

On her left was Bow, kind and loyal as always, visibly trembling with excitement that he looked fit to burst at any moment. On her right were the Magicat sisters, Catra and M’ythra; the former had her feet kicked up on the table with a bored look as she picked her nails and the latter was wagging her tail like the adorable kitten she was. She peered across the table to her newest group of friends: the admittedly cool named Masters of the Universe.

She already knew Teela from their adventure in Horde territory, as well as the punch to the face she received from the amazon warrior shortly after narrowly escaping. Ram Man reminded Glimmer of Scorpia: a mountain of muscle with a heart of gold. Man-E-Faces beside him was a strange but courteous man with a love for theater, having put on an impressive one-man performance for the Queen of Bright Moon. Next to him was Mekaneck, who…honestly had the lamest power Glimmer had ever seen – Netossa would probably like him. And then there was Orko, the court jester. His all-red ensemble and darkened face reminded her of Shadow Weaver, just without the menacing demeanor or the competency.

“Thank you for coming on such short notice,” Glimmer addressed them with a serious tone. “I’ve gathered you all here to discuss something very important.”

“Not all of us are here,” Mekaneck notice, looking around the table. “I don’t see Man-At-Arms or Stratos.”

“Father took Stratos for a mission on the outskirts of the kingdom,” said Teela. “They likely won’t be back for the rest of the day.”

“Which means we will have to do with what we have,” said Glimmer, keeping the tone. “You are all gathered here because I have a mission of great importance for all of you. One that may very well be the most important mission of your lives. So important – “

“Will you give it a rest already, sparkles,” said Catra, tilting her head back with an exasperated groan. “It’s just a birthday party.”

“It’s not _just _a birthday party, Catra!” Bow surprised everyone with his vigorous exclamation, jumping out of his seat with his fists clenched. “It’s Adora and Adam’s first birthday party as a family! And Adora’s first birthday party _ever_!”

“The kid never had a birthday party?” said Ram Man, looking like he had just witnessed someone kicking a puppy.

“The Horde never did birthday parties and there was never time for one during the war,” Catra answered nonchalantly. “Honestly, none of us even knew when Adora’s birthday was until we came here.”

“Which is why we have to make this the greatest surprise birthday party they ever had!” Glimmer declared firmly, slamming her fists on the table in emphasis. “We have to go all out! Balloons, banners, ice sculptures, fabulous dresses, a mountain of presents, a hundred tier cake – “

“Don’t you think that’s a _little _excessive,” said Man-E-Faces, quirking a brow.

“Okay, maybe that is a little unrealistic,” Glimmer admitted, calming down a bit. “But Adora’s my best friend and she deserves to have the best first birthday party ever. I just want to make sure everything is perfect.”

“We’ve thrown our fair share of royal parties, Glimmer,” said Teela, reaching over and patting the queen’s arm kindly. “Don’t worry, we’re going to make sure that both of them have a great time. I’ve already asked the servants to start prepping the throne room and prepare the banquet. Don’t worry, everything will be fine.”

“Just one problem,” said Mekaneck. “How’re we going to keep it a surprise from the prince and princess?”

“The king and queen are taking Adam and Adora to explore the Evergreen Forest since Adora’s never been there,” answered Teela. “Adam probably suspects there’ll be a party waiting when they come back, but Adora doesn’t know today’s her birthday, so at least one of them will be surprised.”

“And we’ll make it the biggest surprise she’s ever gotten,” said Glimmer resolutely.

“Ooh, ooh! Can I help?” Orko asked, waving his hand excitedly. “I’ve been working on a magic spell that – “

“**_No!_**” The Masters shouted all at once, making the Princess Alliance look at them strangely.

“No offense, Orko,” said Mekaneck, “but the last thing we need right now is a flash flood in the castle – “

“Or dropping statues on people’s heads,” Man-E-Faces added.

“Or turning the royal family into flowers again,” Teela remarked.

“Oh, all right,” Orko visibly deflated, hovering off somewhere in the background.

“Do…we even want to know what that was about?” Bow asked nervously.

“Probably not,” said Catra lazily. “I still say your making way too big of a deal about this. This is _Adora _we’re talking about. Just bake her a cake shaped like She-Ra and she’ll be over the moons.”

“How can you not care about something so important?!” Glimmer leered at the Magicat accusingly. “She’s your fiancé!”

“Which is why I know she won’t care about some big fancy schmancy birthday party,” said Catra, folding her hands behind her head and tilting back. “She’s been to dozens of parties ever since she joined you princesses. We just had one at Bright Moon before everything went sideways. Honestly, I think it would be better just to have an intimate gathering of all her friends and family instead of this huge bash with a hundred strangers she doesn’t even know.”

“You know…that actually sounds nice…,” Bow admitted meekly, immediately cowering under Glimmer’s heated gaze.

“Just because you don’t like parties doesn’t mean the Adora doesn’t,” said Glimmer heatedly. “And some of us want to make sure Adora actually has a good time at her first birthday party ever. You think you know everything, but I bet you didn’t even remember to get her a present, Catra.”

“Okay, number one, I do like parties,” Catra retorted dryly. “The guys back in the Crimson Wastes know how to celebrate the right way. Number two, I do care that Adora has a good time, which is why I think we don’t need to be so extravagant. And number three, I already got my gift for Adora.” She crossed her arms, smirking. “It’s awesome and it's totally better than anything you can come up with, Sparkles.”

“You wanna bet?” Glimmer challenged.

“No, no, she doesn’t!” Bow yelped. Experience has taught him that bets between Glimmer and Catra always end badly.

“Okay, you’re on,” Catra accepted with a Cheshire grin, dropping her chair back on all fours. Bow groaned into his hands. “Whoever gets Adora the best birthday gift wins.”

“And the loser has to scrub all palace statues…with their toothbrush,” said Glimmer wickedly.

“Deal,” said Catra, and the two of them firmly shook hands, sealing the contract.

“Twenty gold coins says Catra will totally bombs on her gift,” Mekaneck whispered to Ram Man.

“I’ll take that bet,” Ram Man muttered back.

“You know my ears aren’t just for decoration, right?” Catra announced, leering at the two Masters who sat up straight quickly.

“Well, if that’s all settled,” said Teela, rising from her chair, “I suppose we ought to be getting ready.”

“Getting ready for what?”

Everyone spun around in their chairs as Man-At-Arms entered the chamber, his bushy mustache quirking at the unusual sight of the Masters and the Princesses cluttered around a small round table that most definitely wasn’t there before.

“Should…I be concerned?” he asked strangely.

“Queen Glimmer was just organizing a meeting about Adam and Adora’s birthday party,” Teela explained before the ruler of Bright Moon could jump in. “What are you doing back, father? And where’s Stratos? I thought you two had a mission on the outskirts of the kingdom.”

“We did,” said Man-At-Arms grimly. “Until we noticed some of Skeletor’s men moving on the fringes of the Dark Hemisphere. I’ve sent Stratos ahead to keep watch while I came back to make sure everything was all right on this end.”

“Should we go after them?” asked Teela; the Masters and the Princesses quickly rose from their chairs, looking serious. “Maybe we can cut them off at – “

“Let’s not jump the gun,” said Man-At-Arms evenly, touching his daughter’s shoulder to keep her still. “We don’t know what Skeletor is planning. For all we know, he could be trying to lure us away from the palace so he can attack when our defenses are lowest. He’s done it before.” Teela visibly deflated, but nodded in understanding. “Until we get a better idea of what Skeletor is up to, we need to be ready. Stratos will contact us if there’s any changes.”

“Are you sure, father?” said Teela questionably. “I mean, it’s Skeletor. Shouldn’t we at least do a recon of Snake Mountain?”

“Relax, daughter, everything is being handled,” said Man-At-Arms passively, resting a hand on his Teela’s shoulder. “Trust me.”

“O…kay…,” said Teela slowly, eyeing him strangely.

“Sooo…,” Everyone turned to Bow, who was tapping his fingers meekly. “Does…that mean we’re…still throwing the birthday party?”

Man-At-Arms tilted his head at the archer, but then chuckled and said, “I don’t see why not. We’re not exactly going anywhere until Stratos contacts us. And I think Prince Adam and Princess Adora would appreciate it when they get back. It is their first party together, isn’t it?”

Bow squeed and ran out the door shouting, “Dibs on the streamers!”

“I call the cake!” Ram Man yelled excitedly, nearly bowling everyone out of his way.

“Confetti cannon! We _need _a confetti cannon!” said Mekaneck.

“Do you think the princess will like my one-man performance of _Desert Nights_?” said Man-E-Faces.

“Party games! Party games!” M’ythra cried excitedly.

One by one, the Masters and the Princesses left Glimmer's chambers with Catra and the Queen of Bright Moon hanging back for a bit. Before he exited the room, Man-At-Arms turned his head toward Catra and…smiled at her. It wasn’t the fatherly smile he had for Teela or the confident grin when they defeated Skeletor’s Evil Warriors for the umpteenth time. No, this one was…amusing. Like Catra was some form of entertainment. The Magicat’s ear pointed back and her tail puffed as she felt a disturbing tingling running up her spine; she felt a strong desire to hiss at him, but bit her tongue to hold it back. Seemingly satisfied with Catra’s reaction, Man-At-Arms closed the door behind him.

Glimmer seemed to notice Catra’s unease, too. She touched the Magicat’s shoulder, startlingly her, until she realized it was only Glimmer and calmed down.

“Are you all right?” Glimmer asked concerned. They weren’t exactly best friends – there’s still a _lot_ of baggage to unpack between them – but they were friends nonetheless. “You…seemed a little upset. Is something wrong?”

“It…it just felt like…,” Catra said hesitantly, staring at the ground in uncertainty. “You know what? It’s probably just my imagination…. Whelp, I’m outta here. This room reeks with glitter and mushy stuff.” She walked over to the door, opened it, but stopped to look back at Glimmer. “You better get your toothbrush ready, Sparkles.”

“Why? I won’t need it, fleabag,” Glimmer retorted confidently.

Catra snorted before she left the room.

* * *

Like Teela had told them, the palace servants were already making preparations for the prince and princess’s upcoming party by the time Bow, Mekaneck and Orko came in. It had been a long time since Eternos had a chance to throw a big party during the constant battle against the forces of evil, but it was a special occasion because the entire royal family would be attending for the first time in two decades. Over three dozen circular tables were spread out across the chamber, but were pushed away from the center to make room for a dance floor. Golden streamers and white festoons hanged around the upper walls with little baubles emblazoned with the marks of He-Man and She-Ra (as if they couldn’t make it more obvious). And on either side of the four thrones (one that had been added shortly after Adora’s arrival), a pair of finely woven tapestries hanged from the ceiling depicting Adam and Adora standing tall and wielding their swords nobly.

“This is going to be amazing!” Bow declared enthusiastically. “We are going to throw the best birthday party in history of birthday parties! And no one’s going to stop us!”

“Unless a raving madman decides to crash again,” said Mekaneck joking.

“Don’t jinx it!” Bow hissed quietly like he was afraid some malevolent force was listening.

“Kid, relax, it’s fine,” said Mekaneck calmly. “The palace has been on high alert for these type of things for the last fours years. Pretty much everyone in Eternia is coming to visit, so there’s no way anyone is dumb enough to attack us. Besides, Man-At-Arms said Stratos is watching Skeletor’s goons, so if they get up to anything, we’ll know.” He clapped Bow’s shoulder good-naturally. “Have some fun. Everything’s gonna go smoothly.”

“Yeah, just gotta stay positive,” said Bow brightly. He took a moment to survey the throne room, hand rubbing his chin thoughtfully. “Hmm…the decorations look…all right. I mean, they’re not bad, but – “

“Kinda boring?” Mekaneck offered, chuckling. “Yeah, kinda agree with you. The king and queen have thrown a lot of parties in the past, but they’ve always been so…formal. I mean, the food’s good and Man-E knows how to put on a good show, but it's still – “

“Bland?” said Bow.

“Exactly,” Mekaneck agreed.

“Ooh, if it’s excitement you want, then I’ve got just the thing!” Orko said eagerly, floating over their heads. He reached under his sleeve and pulled out a bundle of unlit torches that Bow _definitely_ knew shouldn’t have fit in the tiny wizard’s cloak. “I’ve been working on my fire dance routine and I’ve only burned myself eighteen out of twenty-two times!”

“After that incident with the Kulatak ambassador?” said Mekaneck, crossing his arms firmly. “I don’t think so.”

Orko deflated with a soft whine.

Bow was still humming to himself when the dark-skinned archer suddenly breathed an excited gasp, his eyes visibly sparkling in a way only Etherians seemed capable of.

“I just had the best idea ever!” Bow announced giddily. He ran out the door, shouting behind him, “I’ll be back in a sec!”

“Heh, I like him. He’s a good kid,” said Mekaneck, grinning. He turned to Orko. “We should help out, too. I’ll help out with the banners. Can I trust you to set up the tables without breaking anything?”

“Yeah! You can totally trust me, Mekaneck! I won’t break a single thing!” The tiny wizard promised with a two fingered salute. “Warlock’s honor!”

Mekaneck hesitated, but eventually relented and left the Trollan sorcerer by himself to help the palace servants set up.

Orko laughed excitedly, happy that he had been trusted with such an important task! (Okay, not so much trust as much reluctantly handed to, and not exactly the most important job in the castle, but at least he was included!)

The Trollan sorcerer stared down the rows of tables with a determined glare as if facing down a terrible beast in a battle for life or death (which, realistically, Orko would be running away from). He rolled up his sleeves, tipped back his hat, and wiggled his fingers as he muttered some incoherent incantation. A flash of electric-blue bolts flew from his fingers, flying across the throne room and bouncing off the tables one after another like springs. Every time the light touched, the tables would briefly explode in a shower of colorful sparks and reveal the surprising new table setting: white table clothes with red embroidery, six place mats to a setting with full sterling silver cutlery, and a colorful bouquet of flowers that varied from different tables. The normally bumbling jester had really outdone himself this time.

Said jester slowly opened his eyes, having closed them before casting the spell, when he didn’t hear any of the usual explosions or angry yells. Orko looked just as taken aback as anyone else when he saw what an amazing job he had done.

“I did it?” said Orko questionably. He quickly struck a confident pose and continued, “I mean, of course I did! They don’t call me ‘Orko the Magnificent’ for nothing.”

“Wow, great job, Orko.” The Trollan squeaked with a fright, nearly falling out of the air. He tried to calm his rapidly beating heart when he realized that Bow had suddenly appeared next to him. “Love the attention to detail. The aesthetic is _gorgeous._”

“Oh, heh, you think so?” Orko asked sheepishly. It wasn’t often he got praised for using magic these days.

“Yeah, you’ve got a real eye for decorating,” Bow complimented him.

“Aw, shucks,” said Orko bashfully. “So where’d you run off to in such a hurry?”

“Well, I had some idea about how we could spruce this place up,” said Bow, gesturing to the expansive throne room. “But after see you with your amazing magic, I realized we don’t need to do anything. You could do it all by yourself.”

“I could?” said Orko in a surprised tone.

“Of course you could,” said Bow, throwing his arm around the Trollan’s shoulders. “Look at what you’ve already done. Those are some of the best tables I have _ever_ seen. Just imagine how amazing this place would look if you just give it a little…razzle dazzle.”

“Hmm, I don’t know,” Orko hummed uncertainly. “The Masters really don’t like it when I use magic for big stuff like that. Just between you and me,” he lowered his voice into a conspiratorial hush, “I…really don’t have a lot of control when it comes to my magic. I used to have a wand to channel it, but I lost it a while back and ever since then…well…things don’t always turn out so good.”

“Hey, c’mon now, you shouldn’t beat yourself up like that,” said Bow supportively. “Sure, you might have made some mistakes in the past, but how can you get better if you don’t try? Listen, if something goes wrong, I’ll take the blame for it, okay.” He grabbed the Trollan’s shoulders and smiled kindly. “I believe in you, Orko. And If you believe in yourself, I know you can do it.”

“You believe in me?” Orko gasped; Bow nodded. “Wow…thanks…. All right, I’ll give it a shot!” With a confident look in his eyes, Orko floated above the chamber near the ceiling, cracking his knuckles. “Stand back and watch how a master sorcerer prepares a party!”

Bow stood back, all right. The dark-skinned archer stood so far back that he slipped out the door without notice, a strange smile on his lips.

Mekaneck, who had been helping a servant set up the buffet table, noticed Orko floating overhead, and called down, “Orko, what’re you doing?”

“Don’t worry, Mekaneck, I’ve got this!” said Orko confidently. “I’m gonna pull out all the stops for Adam and Adora’s party!”

“Orko, no!” Mekaneck warned hurriedly. “Whatever you’re thinking, do not – “

The Trollan wizard did not heed the Master’s warning. Orko waved his hands above his head in small circles, sputtering out whatever magic words came to his head (“**_Hocus Pocus! Alakazam! Er…something, something and bam!_**”) The sorcerer lurched forward, throwing out his hands, and launched several bolts of magical energy at the chamber walls…which then somehow bounced off and started flying in every direction.

The ensuing chaos was to be expected.

Two of the magic bolts snapped at the tapestries, causing them to come to life, slithering off the walls and chase after the palace servants like a pair of hungry snakes; Adam’s and Adora’s stitched face looked surprisingly evil. Several of the tables that Orko had decorated had been hit, somehow growing sets of teeth and running around, barking like rabid dogs; the flowers on top also grew into deadly man-eating plants. Mekaneck dropped to the floor as a magic bolt flew over his head, striking the ice sculpture behind him (“Where did those even come from?!” he cried). Unfortunately, the ice sculpture had been a _very _detailed depiction of He-Man and She-Ra, both of whom turned their heads at Mekaneck, making cracking noises as their eyes narrowed on the Master.

And that was when Bow came running back into the room, his hands behind his back and a giant grin on his face.

“Guess what I’ve got?!” he shouted cheerfully. He revealed what he was hiding and waved them over his head. “Party poppers!” The timing was almost comedic the way the servants stampeded out of the room past him, causing Bow to frown sadly. “I thought they were a good idea….”

The momentarily depressed archer was suddenly lifted off his feet as Mekaneck and Orko grabbed him by the elbows, carrying him out the door. He only briefly saw the chaos in the throne room – snake tapestries, monster tables, and evil ice sculptures - before they slammed the doors shut. Mekaneck, Orko, and Bow threw their backs against the doors, trying to keep them closed when something inside started banging against them.

“What happened?!” Bow squeaked. “I was gone for five minutes!”

“Ask Orko,” Mekaneck grimaced. “He’s the guy who thought it would be a good idea to turn the throne room into a haunted house.”

“I didn’t know that would happen, honest!” Orko pleaded. “Bow said I could do it and – “

“Whoa, whoa, _I_ told you?” Bow interjected. “Don’t blame me for this!”

“I’m not!” Orko shrieked. A particularly hard slam threw him off the door, but he shoulders back into them. “I was decorating the tables like Mekaneck said and Bow though I could use my magic to…speed things up a little! I didn’t mean for any of this to happen!”

“I wasn’t even in the room!” Bow cried. “I was getting party poppers – oh my god! My party poppers! I left them in the throne room!”

“I think we have more important problems right now,” Mekaneck grunted.

“What’re you morons doing now?”

Catra was coming down the corridor and she was…leading a majestic white horse for some reason. The Magicat gave the three of them a strange looking, but it didn’t compare to the looks they were giving her.

“Uh…what’s with the horse?” Mekaneck asked awkwardly.

Catra and the horse gave each other sideways glances, then Catra said, “None of your business, Neck Guy. Anyway, what’re you three doing out here? I thought you were supposed to be decorating or something.” Catra inwardly sighed as the trio immediately exploded into accusations, pointing fingers at one another in loud voices. “You know what? Dumb question. Just…move.”

Catra ignored their sputtered warnings and shoved them aside. She grasped the handles, opening the doors slightly, and poked her head inside; the carnage inside sounded much worse than it did before. Catra shut the doors, pinching the bridge of her nose with an irritated sigh.

“This is why I said we shouldn’t throw a big party,” she muttered to herself before turning to the three. “You idiots better clean this up before dumb blonde #1 and dumb blonde #2 get back or I’ll tell Sparkles about this. And trust me, she _will_ drop you off a cliff if you ruin Adora’s party.”

And with that threatening little anecdote, Catra pulled the horse down the hall, leaving the boys to stare at the doors like they were the gates to hell.

* * *

The palace kitchens were clattering with a combination of pots, pans, and other utensils as Glimmer, Ram Man, and Man-E-Faces went to work preparing the upcoming birthday feast (which Glimmer initially found strange because this should be the servant’s job.) It was an understatement to say that Glimmer wasn’t the best cook – Catra still gives her a lot of flack for that lump of charcoal that was _supposed _to be spaghetti – so she had taken to shadowing the other two and helping wherever she could.

Man-E-Robot became the main persona for this endeavor (Glimmer thought his power was both cool and weird at the same time), calculating the exact measurements for the ingredients and going over the recipe like he was studying rocket science. Ram Man, however, had gone ahead with baking the first layer of the cake using only his gut instinct and was making significantly more progress than Man-E. Glimmer’s eyes sparkled with excitement as Ram Man carefully pulled the cake out of the over and set it down on the kitchen island where he had been preparing the frosting.

“That looks _amazing_, Ram Man,” Glimmer complimented. “I had no idea you could cook.”

“Aw, it’s nothin’,” said Ram Man bashfully. “Just a little somethin’ I like doin’ every now and then.”

“**Which explains why we need to stock the pantries so often,**” Man-E-Robot commented; Ram Man stuck out his tongue childishly.

“Everyone is always so bad at cooking back home,” said Glimmer. “My mom tried to make a cake once for my thirteenth birthday because she wanted it to be special, but…well, let’s just say the head chef permanently banned her from the kitchen for eternity. And dad…has had a weird obsession with eating bugs ever since he came home, so…. Thank god I have Bow around, or I would’ve starved before Adora found me.”

“So…,” said Ram Man, grinning teasingly. “You and Bow are like…you know?”

It took a few seconds before the Queen of Bright Moon understood his meaning. All at once, Glimmer’s face exploded into an interesting shade of red, her face heating up they could practically see the steam coming off her head.

“W-Wha – no! I mean, not that – what I – Gah!” Glimmer sputtered erratically, flailing her arms like she was warding off evil spirits. “Bow and I have been best friends for, like, ever! We aren’t like…you know? I mean, it’s not like there’s anything wrong with him. He’s sweet, and funny, and smart, and – but that doesn’t mean I _like _him like that! And…sure, if we were…like that…it…wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world…. Not that I ever thought about it! Nope! Nu-uh! I definitely haven’t thought about…you know!”

“Sure about that?” Ram Man asked smugly. Glimmer buried her burning face in her hands, moaning.

“Stop picking on the poor girl, Ram Man,” said Man-E-Faces, switching to his human persona. “We still a lot of work ahead, and you need to keep working on that cake.”

“Yeah, yeah,” said Ram Man dismissively. He pulled the bowl of frost over and gave it an experimental taste. “Hmm…could use a little more vanilla.” But when he reached for the bottle, he found it disappointingly empty. “Aw man, that was the last one. Now I gotta go down to the market to get some more.”

“I can do it!” Glimmer volunteered, partially to be helpful, and partially to get away from further embarrassment. “I can teleport over to the market and back in five minutes tops.”

“Thanks, Glim,” said Ram Man appreciatively. “You’re so lucky having awesome magic powers.”

“I know,” said Glimmer, grinning. “Back in a flash.”

The Queen of Bright Moon evaporated in a splash of sparkles, leaving the two Masters to finish the rest of the preparations. With the cake now on delay, Ram Man stomped over to the nearest chopping board and started preparing his favorite feast food: meat. Man-E-Faces switched back to his robot persona and _finally _started the stew he should have been preparing ten minutes ago when the kitchen door suddenly opened. Man-E looked over, returning to his human face with a raised brow when he saw Glimmer stepping inside. Besides the fact that she literally just left a minute, it was strange that she didn’t just teleport into the kitchen like she always did.

“Is something the matter, Glimmer?” asked Man-E-Faces. “You got back awfully quick.”

“Yeah, it’s kind of embarrassing,” said Glimmer, scratching her head sheepishly. “I was at the market when I remembered I don’t exactly have the right money. I have Etherian coin, but I don’t know if they’ll accept it.”

“Hmm, that’s a good point,” Man-E-Faces hummed. “We should ask King Randor if we can do something about currency exchange. Hold on a second, I put my coin purse in the back….”

Man-E-Faces walks toward the back of the kitchen with Glimmer hummed pleasantly behind him. He found his coin purse sitting on the counter, but when Man-E-Faces reached for it, he nearly jumped out of his skin when a loud clatter rang in the kitchen. Startled, Man-E-Faces spun around at the same time as Ram Man, who was wielding an oversized turkey leg like a club. Ram Man’s cake had been completely dumped on the floor face down, splattering everywhere, and the frosting he had been making was tossed to one side, spilling out of the bowl. Glimmer, who was suddenly on the opposite side of the kitchen, let out a scandalized gasp as she looked Man-E-Face’s way.

“Man-E, how could you do such a thing?” she gasped loudly. “Just throwing Ram Man’s cake on the ground after he worked _sooo_ hard to make that.”

“What? I didn’t – “ Man-E-Faces gaped.

“Hey, what’s the big idea, Man-E!” Ram Man rumbled, jabbing the other master in the chest with his drumstick. “What’d you ruin it for?! I was makin’ that special for Adam and Adora!”

“But I didn’t – “

“That wasn’t very nice, Man-E,” said Glimmer, frowning, fists on her hips. “Just because you told me that Ram Man’s cooking skills are complete trash and he has all the culinary tastes of a diseased rat doesn’t give you the right to mess it up for him.”

“So, you think my food is bad, do ya?” Ram Man growled at Man-E-Faces, invading the cyborg’s personal space. “You think just because you were some fancy-schmancy actor whatsits that you’re better than me? Do ya?”

“No, Ram Man, I would never – “ Man-E-Faces defended weakly, but Glimmer cut him off again.

“He also thinks you’re as dumb as a bag of rocks,” Glimmer stated all too casually, leaning against the island nonchalantly.

“That does it!” Ram Man howled.

Before Man-E-Faces could get the chance to defend himself, Ram Man lifted the actor overhead and chucked him across the kitchen, smashing sizable dent in the wall. As Man-E started to pick himself up, Ram Man let out a battle cry and charged head first; Glimmer hopped on the island to get out of his way, crossing her legs and leaning back calmly. Realizing that talking was no longer an option, Man-E-Faces switched to his monster persona and reached out to hold Ram Man’s shoulders before they could collide. The two powerhouses struggled for a moment until Man-E-Monster kicked Ram Man in the ankle, unbalancing him, enabling the actor to throw him sideways into the pantry. Man-E hoped that would have been enough to calm him down, but Ram Man rounded on him and tackled Man-E-Monster to the floor.

A small smirk appeared on Glimmer’s lips as she watched the Masters roll around on the floor like children. Amused, Glimmer hopped off the island and calmly walked out the door, humming.

A few seconds later, Glimmer “poofed” into the kitchen triumphantly with a little bottle in hand.

“I got the vanilla!” Glimmer announced victoriously. “I forgot to take some Eternian coins, so I kinda had to barter – BWAH!”

Glimmer just narrowly blinked out of the way before Ram Man stomped over, carrying Man-E-Monster across the kitchen and through the wall. The Masters crashed outside into the hallway where Ram Man slammed Man-E-Monster into the opposite wall. Man-E-Monster snarled and punched his friend across the face, shoving him off, then locked hands with the bruiser in a struggle for dominance. Glimmer “pooffed” into the corridor seconds later and, seeing the two fight, started blasting then with glitter bombs. The two Masters yelped, covering their eyes from the sudden flashes and staggered.

“What is going on with you two?!” Glimmer yelled, fists aglow. “I’m gone for a few minutes and you’re both trying to kill each other.”

“Hey, you’re the one that started this!” Man-E-Faces accused, switching back his human persona.

“Me?!” said Glimmer, bewildered.

“Hey, don’t you go blamin' Glim,” said Ram Man defensively, shoving Man-E back.

“She’s the one who knocked the cake over and blamed me for it,” said Man-E-Faces, glaring at the queen. “Then she made up all those lies about those things I said about you. C’mon, Ram Man, you’re my best friend. You know I wouldn’t say any of that stuff.”

“Well, I guess not…,” Ram Man muttered doubtfully.

“Well, I didn’t do anything!” Glimmer defended. “I wasn’t even in the palace when this whole thing started.”

“That’s a – “ Man-E-Faces started to say when they heard Catra’s voice shouting, “What the hell is going on down here?!”

The Magicat practically sprinted down the hallway, her heterochromatic eyes dilated and her short hair standing up, carrying a long box under her arm. Catra had to take a minute to drink in the scene: two Masters – men twice the age of the princesses – were covered in cake and other assortments of food; there was a giant hole in the wall leading to the disaster area known as the kitchen; Sparkles holding up her glowing fists ready for a fight. Catra threw her head back, groaning.

“Seriously, what is going on here?!” Catra snapped irritably.

“Look, I just got here when these two started pounding on each other,” Glimmer said immediately before the Master’s could get a word in. “What’s in the box?”

Catra glanced down at the object in question, quickly hiding it behind her back, saying, “Don’t deflect. You three had one simple job and you couldn’t even do that right!” Glimmer and the masters started shouting, but Catra cut them off. “_ENOUGH! _Whatever your problems are, I don’t care! Sparkles, you’re the one who wanted to throw this big party for Adora. Her and the royal big shots are coming back in a few hours. Do you _want _to disappoint her?”

“…No,” Glimmer mumbled in a small voice; Ram Man and Man-E-Faces looked rightfully ashamed.

“Then clean this up and get back to work,” Catra order, going into full Force Captain Mode. The trio slouched back into the kitchens and started to clean up, Catra watching them with a frown. “Everybody’s acting so weird today….”

* * *

Everyone was working hard to make sure everything was ready by the time the royal family returned from their outing. Everyone but Teela, that is. Don’t get her wrong, she loved – **_Liked_** – Adam and wanted him to have a normal birthday for a change since his last proper celebration was ruined by Skeletor four years ago. But Teela wasn’t exactly the party planning type; she was the “punch-and-kick-everything-until-it-breaks” type. Which is why she was here instead of helping inside.

Teela leapt backward dodging another volley of laser fire from her father’s training drones, sliding across the courtyard with her staff ready at her side. Eight robots encroached upon her from all sides, forming a tight circle around the female Master, each of them equipped with a wrist-mounted laser. Her father had completely overhauled the training bots ever since Etheria suddenly popped up in Eternia’s orbit, fearing whatever dangers it might bring in addition to the ones they already have. She had been meaning to test them out for a while, so now might as well be the best time.

She deflected one of the laser shots with the head of her staff, then stepped to the right to avoid another, and tilted her head slightly as one shot her from behind. The training bots thus far were only shooting at her one at a time, making it easy to dodge. They were at the lowest setting, after all; her father always insisted that they start from the lowest and worked their way up when testing the bots to avoid potential malfunctions. Not like Teela was planning to work up a sweat before the party, anyway.

Teela slapped another shot laser beam away with her staff, sending it flying into the face of one of the bots, automatically deactivating it; low level bots usually went down after one or two hits. After ducking another shot, Teela dashed up to the pair in front of her, jumping forward with her staff extended to catch them by the necks. She pulled them down, slamming the backs of their heads on the concrete, and deactivated them. She flipped forward to her feet, sweeping her staff around and smacking another droid across them face, sending it twirling to the ground, depowered. Teela twirled her staff cockily as she turned to face the remaining four bots aiming their lasers on her position. One of them started charging their weapon when the droid suddenly slumped forward, whirring down as its power left it. The other three bots did the same.

Teela blinked dumbfoundedly until she heard someone clearing their throat. She looked over to see her father standing on the edge of the training field, holding the control tablet for the bots. Teela huffed, leaning against her staff as Man-At-Arms crossed the courtyard.

“Father, why did you turn them off?” Teela complained, gesturing to the bots. “I was just starting to get into the rhythm.”

“Well, I couldn’t help noticing that my daughter was the only one not helping with the festivities,” said Man-at-Arms, hands on his hips. “Everyone’s pitching in for the prince and princess’s party. So why aren’t you?”

“Father, you know I’m not the partying type,” Teela groaned. “Besides, Queen Glimmer’s got it handled.”

“You’d be surprised,” said Man-At-Arm. Off in the distance, they heard a loud clatter followed by a lot of colorful words coming from the mouth of a certain queen. “Today has been rather…eventful, to say the least. I’m sure the others wouldn’t mind a hand.”

“Thanks, but I’m not getting involved in that drama,” Teela shook her head. “Besides, I’m still worried about what Skeletor’s men might be up to. Any word from Stratos yet?”

“He said he’s still following them, but has no leads on what they’re doing,” said Man-At-Arms, his bushy mustache frowning.

“Which is why we should be ready for when they strike,” said Teela firmly, sweeping her staff in emphasis. “We can’t afford to be caught off guard in case Skeletor tries to attack the palace again. Remember what happened last time?”

“You don’t have to remind me,” said Man-At-Arms with an exhausted sigh. “I guess there’s no way I can convince you?” Teela shook her head. “All right, you can stay out here and train, but try not to overdo it. We don’t want you getting hurt before the party’s start.”

“At the lowest setting?” Teela smirked haughtily. "Unlikely."

Man-At-Arm’s mustache quirked slightly. He returned to the control tablet and pressed a few buttons. Teela moved into a readied stance as the drones’ green eyes flashed and they raised their wrist-mounted lasers simultaneously. There was a short moment of tense silence Teela waited for the first shot to come…. One of the bots shuddered suddenly and their green eyes sharply flashed to red. The other bots did the same. Teela had a moment to look surprised before the droids unexpectedly all fired their lasers at the same time. The female Master cried out as she threw herself out of the way. She landed stomach first on the ground then flipped on her side looking back; the lasers had made four coin-sized smoking holes in the concrete.

“What the?” Teela gasped, staring at the drones. “What are you - ?”

The training bots shot at her again, this time in rapid-fire. Teela rolled backward to dodge the beams and jumped back to her feet. She twirled her staff vigorously, miraculously deflecting the dozens of projectiles flying at her, but the training bots were not showing signs of stopping. In fact, they were walking closer, forcing Teela to step back.

“Father, something’s wrong with the bots!” Teela screamed. “They’re out of control! Shut them off!”

But when she looked around, Man-At-Arms was nowhere to be seen, and neither was the control pad.

One of the training bots aimed lower than the others, shooting at Teela’s left ankle. The beam only grazed the side, but it was enough to drop her into a kneeling stance, wincing in pain. The droids unleashed another volley, which Teela narrowly dived out of the way off, the beams clipping several strands at the end of her ponytail. She landed on all fours when one of the training bots shot her in the back of the shoulder, thrusting her to the ground on her side holding her injury. She flipped on her back with a grimace as the training bots loomed over her in a tight circle, their lasers pointed at her face at charging.

Teela gasped fretfully and screamed, “Someone help me!”

A furious screeching carried across the courtyard, followed by the sound of metal being torn, when one of the training bots suddenly slumped facedown on the ground; four long gashes stretched across the back of its head, the exposed wires sparking. The droid had no chance to react as a dark blur weaved between them, slashing huge claw marks across their faces. One by one, the bots dropped like flies, their bodies twitching before they went still.

Teela raised herself by her elbows, looking gratefully up at Catra, whose chest was heaving hard and her tail fluffed. She almost looked like she had been just as afraid as Teela, though the Magicat quickly wiped the expression away. Catra offered her clawed hand to Teela, which the Master graciously accepted.

“Thanks for the save,” said Teela. She got up to her feet, but had to lean against her staff because of her ankle. “One more second and I would have been….” Oddly, Teela trailed off when she caught a whiff of something in the air; something musky. It took a couple of sniffs before she realized the smell was coming from Catra, who looked away blushingly. “Are you…wearing cologne?”

“Could we not get into that right now?” Catra mumbled embarrassingly. “What happened out here? I heard screaming and lasers. You’re lucky my sense of hearing is stronger than everyone else or you’d have been dead.”

“I don’t know what happened,” said Teela, frowning. “One minute, I was testing my father’s training drones on the lowest setting, then the next they’re suddenly starting an uprising. It’s like they’d suddenly been switched to max settings. I wasn’t prepared and lost my footing.”

“Was there anyone else around?” Catra asked suspiciously.

“Just my father coming to check up on me,” said Teela. She noticed the look in Catra’s eye and said quickly, “No, you better not be thinking what I think you’re thinking. There’s no way my father would set the drones to kill his own daughter. That’s not like him.”

“But they did go out of control after your dad showed up, right?” asked Catra. Teela stayed tight lipped, not wanting to admit she was right. “He’s not the first one that’s been acting out of character today. The flying imp said Arrow Boy encouraged him to destroy the party area. Whatshisface said Sparkles ruined the cake on purpose and lied about making fun of Muscle Head. I’ve known those two for a long time and I _know _they would never be mean or irresponsible on purpose.”

“And now that I think about it,” Teela mused, “Father is unusually relaxed considering Skeletor’s men are supposedly on the move. He usually tells us we should intercept them, not wait for a report. You think something might be wrong with them?”

“I don’t know,” said Catra, shaking her head. “It’s almost like they’re completely…different…people….”

“Catra?” said Teela as the Magicat trailed off thoughtfully.

“I think I might have an idea…,” Catra answered softly. “But I _really_ hope I’m wrong….”

* * *

M’ythra hummed to herself cheerfully while lay on the floor on her stomach, feet kicking in the air, eyes narrowed in concentration as she tried to make her drawing _just _right.

Being only ten years old, M’ythra couldn’t do a whole lot to help set up the party. The guys were afraid of squishing her while decorating and there was no way Catra was letting her anywhere near the kitchen with its sharp knives and ovens she could crawl into. Luckily, Catra managed to convince M’ythra that she could help by making the party banner (when really, she was just hoping to distract the kitten for a few hours). As an extra precaution, Catra had Melog “babysit” M’ythra; the alien feline lounge on a patch of sunlight near the window.

She had finished writing “Happy Birthday” in pretty much every colored pencil she could get her hands on, but had reached a roadblock when she couldn’t decide what to draw on the sides. She bounced between the ideas of drawing Adama and Adora or He-Man and She-Ra. In the end, she decided to do both: Adam and Adora on the left, He-Man and She-Ra on the right. She had just put the finishing touches on She-Ra’s tiara-head-thingy and sat up, looking it over contemplatively.

“Whaddya think, Melog?” M’ythra asked the magic lion. “Does that look right to you? I never know if I do She-Ra right because she always looks so goofy in that unitard.”

Melog raised her, giving the picture of the smiley Princess of Power a tilted look, gave a mewling reply, then laid her head back down on her paws. M’ythra didn’t understand what the alien lion said, but the way she acted so disinterested gave her some idea.

“Aw, what do you know?” M’ythra pouted, going back to her drawing with puffed out cheeks.

Melog’s ear twitched then and raised her head as the door opened. Catra walked in with her typical playful grin. M’ythra look up and smiled brightly when she saw her older sister, but Melog had a strange look in her eyes. She was normally the first to greet Catra when she walked into a room, but the princess’s familiar was making a rumbling sound in her chest as Catra crossed the room, watching her.

“Hey, how’s my favorite munchkin?” said Catra brightly.

“Catra, look, I’m almost done with the banner,” M’ythra announced proudly. “I’m gonna draw Adam and Adora next.”

“I don’t think there’s enough room for Adora’s ginormous hair poof on there,” Catra snickered. M’ythra giggled at the joke, but Melog’s eyes narrowed dangerously as Catra edged closer to the kitten.

“How’s the decorating coming?” asked M’ythra, starting the outline for Adam’s head. “Is the party going to start soon? I still need time to finish my banner.”

“Nah, I don’t think we’ll be ready any time soon,” Catra sighed exasperatedly. “Everyone’s been losing their minds all day. The party area is being destroyed by man-eating tables and Sparkles can’t keep the peace long enough to bake a simple cake. I’ll never understand how I lost to those morons.”

“You shouldn’t call your friends mean names,” said M’ythra, frowning at her.”

“Ah…you’re right, you’re right,” said Catra tiredly. As small smile crept on her face and said, “Hey, how’s about you help me with a little something for the party?”

“Help? With what?” asked M’ythra curiously.

“Oh, just a little surprise I’ve been wanting to give,” said Catra, reaching out for her sister. “Why don’t we just – “

Catra shrieked and fell back on her tail when Melog suddenly bounced between the sisters, snarling furiously, her mane turned vicious jagged red. The Magicat scuttled back when Melog took a swiped at her with her claws, scratching the tiled floor. M’ythra gasped, immediately jumping up and running around to Melog’s front trying to push her back, which was pointless because the alien lion was twice her size now.

“Melog, what’s wrong with you?!” M’ythra screamed. “Catra, what’s wrong? Why is she upset?”

“I don’t know?!” Catra cried. “That thing just attacked me for no reason!”

“Thing?” M’ythra repeated strangely. “Well, what’s she saying? Can she tell you why she’s so mad?”

“How do you expect me I know what that thing is saying, Kitten?” said Catra.

At that instant, M’ythra’s ears perked and her tail stiffened behind her. Melog stopped trying to push against the cub, but M’ythra turned around slowly, staring up Catra who was rising to her feet with an anxious look.

“…You called me Kitten,” M’ythra murmured, taken hesitant steps behind Melog. “You always said you hated that word because it reminded you of….” Catra spat a curse under her breath and visibly scowled. “You’re not Catra…you’re not my sister! Who are you?!”

“Tch, this is why I don’t work with children,” ‘Catra’ scoffed loudly.

Melog snarled again and “Catra” skittered away before the beast could swiped at her again. The fake feline shoulder slammed out the door, turning sharply around the bend, just as Melog leaped into the corridor. The shapeshifting feline tripped on the smooth surface of the floor, stumbling over her own legs and falling sideways. Melog lifted her head in time to see “Catra’s” tail disappear around the corner. The Halfmoon guardian clambered back up and gave chase.

As she slid around the corner, Melog spotted “Catra”, though she was heading _toward _her instead of away. Melog didn’t think too hard about it; she took two great strides before leaping paws forward to tackle the Magicat by the chest. “Catra” landed on her back with an “Oof!” while Melog pinned her down with her front paws, her mane tingling as she spit angrily. “Catra” shook her head and, surprisingly, hissed right back.

“What the hell, Melog! Get off me!” she snapped.

Just like that, Melog’s furious red reverted back to a calming blue like a switch had been flipped. The alien cat purred loudly while licking Catra’s face, which would have made Catra feel warm and fuzzy on a normal day, but not now. The Magicat princess shoved Melog off and pushed herself up in a sitting position, rubbing the throbbing spot where the back of her head met the ground.

“Gah…why is everyone so crazy today?” Catra groaned.

“Catra!” The Magicat looked up to see M’ythra approaching them, stopping a few feet away hesitantly. “You are the real Catra, right? And – where did you get that suit?”

Catra was no longer wearing her typical combat attire, but had spruced herself up in a pair of black jeans, a burgundy dress shirt with the sleeves rolled past her elbows and the top buttons open, and a white shoulder cape with golden accents; a blatant She-Ra homage.

“Like I’m telling you, Furball,” Catra scoffed with an eye-roll. Rather than insulted, M’ythra looked relieved; only the real Catra called her Furball. “Is there a reason Melog decided to knock one of my nine lives out of me?” Melog mewled softly, to which Catra leered. “You saw a fake Catra?”

“Yeah, there was a fake Catra in our room a minute ago,” M’ythra explained. “Melog knew she was a fake, but I didn’t know she was fake until she called me Kitten. I knew that because you hate that word.”

“Well, you’re not wrong,” grumbled Catra, absently scratching Melog’s ear. “It’s a good thing you found them out before they did anything to you. I don’t want to think what they could have done if they had gotten their scaly hands on you?”

“Scaly?” M’ythra blinked. “Wait? Do you know who it is, Catra?”

“Unfortunately, I have a very good idea,” said Catra darkly.

* * *

It was am hour later after the clearing up the chaos in the throne room that Bow headed for Man-At-Arms’ workshop on the western side of the palace. Since coming to Eternos, Bow had been spending a lot of time here whenever he wasn’t hanging out with the Best Friend Squad. He was fascinated by the Eternian tech, though still surprised it wasn’t as advanced as the First Ones’ crystals, and greatly admired Duncan (both for his genius and his _amazing_ mustache.)

Bow politely knocked on the door and walked in without waiting for a response, knowing Man-At-Arms wouldn’t mind.

“Hey, Duncan, do you know how to make a confetti cannon?” Bow asked, looking around the workshop for the mustached man. “Mekaneck thinks we should have at least a dozen that go off when Adora and Adam walk into the room and I think it’s a really awesome idea…. Duncan?”

But when the archer did another scan of the room, he couldn’t see Man-At-Arms anywhere. Strange, he thought, he would have guessed Duncan would be in here getting ready for when Stratos reported in. But the place looked untouched since yesterday – even the experimental vibration emitter Duncan was working on was as he left it. Weird….

Bow started leaving to look for Duncan elsewhere when a sharp beeping noise reached his ear. The archer stepped back inside, brow quirked, and crossed the room to where the beeping was loudest. There was a pile of crates in the corner of the workshop where Duncan discard failed gadgets and broken scrap to be recycled later. The incessant beeping was coming form behind them. Bow shoved the crates to the side and made a surprised noise when he found a small pile of handheld devices stashed away. It was their communicators – including Bow’s tracker pad. How did they get here?

One of the communication devices had a flashing red dot, making that annoying beeping sound. Bow picked up the device cautiously, pushing the “answer” button, and said in a tentative voice, “Hello?”

“**_Bow, thank Eternia! I’ve been trying to contact someone for hours!_**”

“Duncan?” Bow replied surprisingly. “I was just looking for you. Where are you?”

“**_On the outer edge of the kingdom’s borders,_**” Man-At-Arms answered. “**_Someone or something broke the long-range scanners, so Stratos and I have been trying to repair them. I’ve been trying to get in touch with someone at the palace to see if the systems are running, no one has been responding to their communications._**”

“Yeah, I just found everyone’s communicator’s in your workshop,” said Bow. “It looks like someone was trying to hide them. Wait, did you say you’ve been out of the palace for _hours_?”

“**_Yeah, the scanners were pretty banged up,_**” said Man-At-Arms.

“But we just saw you a little while ago,” said Bow. “You told us to plan for Adora and Adam’s party while we waited for Stratos to report back on Skeletor’s goons.”

“**_Skeletor?!_**” Man-At-Arms shouted shockingly. “**_Bow, what’s going on over there?! Is everyone all right?!_**”

“If that wasn’t the real you…,” Bow said slowly, his mind racing, “then that means its an imposter or…or a shapeshifter…. That’s it! That’s why Okro was so confused! He thought it was me telling him to use magic when it was really someone else!”

“**_Bow, is something happen?!_**”

“Sorry, Duncan, I’ll get back to you later!” Bow yelled frantically, cutting off the communicator before Man-At-Arms could respond. “I need to warn the others!”

But when the archer turned toward the exit, he immediately stopped in his tracks as a tall shadow appeared in the doorway, leering down on him with narrowed eyes….

* * *

Catra was pacing down the hallway, her teeth chattering, her tail lashing furiously, and her (awesome) cape flapping beside her. She replayed all the events of the day in her head, from the Imp blaming Arrow Boy into coaxing him to M’ythra and Melog chasing down the “Fake Catra”. In all instances, the instigators were always Etherian: Arrow Boy, Sparkles, and herself. The odd one out was Captain Mustache. That was the main takeaway for Catra. All of the troublemakers acted in character up to a certain point, but according to Teela, Duncan had been acting out of character since this morning….

“They knew how to act like the Etherians, but not Duncan,” Catra mumbled. “That’s because they don’t _know _how Duncan acts. Because they’ve never met him before. That makes sense. But what doesn’t make sense is how they could even be here – “

“Catra! Catra, wait up!” The Magicat looked over her shoulder at the high-pitched scream, spotting Bow running up to her, panting like he had run a hundred-meter dash. The archer stopped beside her, leaning against his knees to catch his breath. “Catra…Catra…wait…. I need…I need to tell you – Oh my gosh, that outfit looks _amazing _on you!” He squealed delightfully as he looked the Magicat up and down. “I swear, you look great in _everything!_”

“Bow, focus!” hissed Catra, snapping her fingers in front of his face. “What’s going on? Did something happen again?”

“Oh, right!” said Bow, immediately donning a serious look. “Catra, there’s someone running around the palace wearing other people’s faces! I just found out that Teela’s dad isn’t really Teela’s dad! He’s still out near the border with Stratos!”

“I knew it!” Catra shouted. “Someone wearing my face almost got to my sister; thank god Melog was with her. They’ve been the one who’s been messing with people all day.”

“We have to warn everyone!” Bow cried.

But when he tried to run, Catra grabbed him by the arm and pulled him back.

“Are you crazy?!” Catra snapped. “Whoever’s been messing with us is a shapeshifter. They could be anyone. We can’t trust anybody. It was dumb enough that you trusted me without checking if I’m the real Catra or not.”

“Okay, you have point, but you don’t have to be mean about it,” said Bow, pouting sadly.

“Just…,” Catra started angrily, but caught herself. Stop, breathe, she told herself; remember your sessions with Perfuma. After taking a minute to calm down, she said, “Look, I’m sorry for snapping at you. I’m just really worried about our friends.”

“Aw, it’s okay,” said Bow; he’s so quick to forgive. “So, what’s the plan. How’re we gonna catch this guy?”

I have an idea,” said Catra. “Follow me.”

The Magicat pulled him down the hall, nearly making the poor boy stumble as he tried to match her pace. She forced them to make a wide berth around the palace servants, scaring them with angry hisses. After for what seemed like miles (to Bow at least; he was already running around before Catra dragged him along), the pair stopped in front of the doors to Adora and Catra’s shared room. The Magicat look around conspiratorial and said in a soft voice, “Get inside and we’ll talk.”

Bow nodded and opened the door –

“HI-YAH!”

And the next thing he knew, the archer was being thrown against the opposite wall by a sparkly bomb. He slumped to the floor in a daze when he heard a distinct _thwing _and was suddenly entangled in a large mesh net.

“We got them! Nice job, Catra!”

“Did you have to hit them so hard, Glimmer? They’re still wearing my face....”

Bow blinked up as Glimmer _and _Bow step into view, both of them leering distrustfully at their captive. M’yhtra, Melog, and The Masters ambled up behind them and formed a half-circle. Each of them held different levels of righteous anger from M’ythra’s annoyed glare to Teela’s straight “I’m-seriously-pissed-so-I’ll-break-you-legs” glower. “Bow” was dumbfounded for a moment when Catra pulled them into a sitting position, leaning on their shoulder, letting out a squeaky laugh.

“Oh man, you should’ve seen your face!” she cackled uncontrollably. “You were all like ‘Aah, no! Betrayal!’ You know, maybe I should consider a career in acting.”

“Catra, what’s going on?!” “Bow” squeaked. “How could you – “

“Save the act for someone who buys it,” Catra interrupts uncaringly. “We know it’s you, Double Trouble.”

“Bow” held muted expression for a moment before his lips curled into a playfully grin – he blinked, and his murky-green eyelids fluttered horizontally.

Catra stood up as the imposter’s form melted into a shapeless dark mass, growing long and thin. When their shape was solidified, Double Trouble looked exactly the way Catra remembered them: a tall, slender reptilian-elf creature with light-green skin, slicked-back pale-blonde hair, slitted golden eyes, and a lengthy tail. Double Trouble leaned back against the wall casually, flashing their pointed teeth at Catra.

“All right, you caught me,” they said dramatically, not sounding upset in the least. “I figured you would be the one to find me out, Kitten. This little circus act you’ve joined up with only has one brain cell, and you have it.”

“_HEY!_” Bow, Orko, and Mekaneck shouted indignantly.

“Though, I am curious,” said Double Trouble. “How did you know it was me.”

“The way you caused chaos between everyone reminded me of when we used the same tactic on the Princesses during the war,” Catra explained. “You also misread Duncan’s character; that’s because you didn’t know him so you were adlibbing. Then you called my sister ‘Kitten’, which I hate because of _you._” Double Trouble smiled at that remark. “I had an idea it might’ve been you, but I couldn’t confirm it until I overheard Bow talking to Duncan over the comms. I knew you would be coming for me next, so I had Bow check the others and set up this trap while I lured you in.

“Impressive,” said Double Trouble sincerely. “Bravo. You’ve really outdone yourself this time, Kitten.”

“I don’t want your praise,” Catra growled. She grabbed the shapeshifter by the collar, pulling them closer to her face. “You have a lot of nerve showing your face after what you did.”

“I did a lot of stuff, Kitten,” said Double Trouble teasingly. “You’re going to have to be more specific.”

“Scorpia!” Catra snapped. “You tricked her! Turned her against me! You had her go to Hordak and sent me to Beast Island.”

“Oh, darling, I didn’t do anything of the sort,” said Double Trouble with a condescending chuckle. “All I did was help her realize how toxic your relationship really was. Your obsession with Adora and your desperation to prove your own self-worth was what caused your relationship to fall apart. Scorpia tried so hard to be your friend, to prove how much she loved and respected you, but you didn't care. You took her friendship and threw it back in her face - repeatedly. You're the one who drove her away, Kitten, not me. Scorpia is such a sweet girl. She deserved better than to be your emotional punching bag.”

Catra’s ears flattened against her head, memories of her abusive past toward her best friend coming to the forefront of her mind.... Catra shook her head sharply and shoved the shapeshifter into the wall, baring her teeth; Melog hissed behind her with her pointed red mane.

“How did you get to Etheria?” Catra questioned. “And who hired you to mess with us?”

“What makes you think anyone hired me?” Double Trouble replied playfully. “Maybe I just wanted to say hello to my good friend Catra.”

“You don’t have friends,” Catra spat. “And you wouldn't risk invading a highly secure location filled with people who could pound the daylights out of you unless there was a huge payoff. So I’ll ask you again: who hired you?”

“All right, smarty cat, I’ll tell you…for a price,” said Double Trouble. Catra gave them an unimpressed look, flashing her _very_ sharp claws. “Ugh, _fiiiine_. You’re no fun anymore, Kitten. If you must know, it was Shadow Weaver. Her and some skull-faced man with a _dreadful_ fashion sense.”

“Skeletor,” said Teela.

“Yeah, yeah, big scary man,” said Double Trouble, rolling their eyes. “Anyway, I was enjoying a nice day in the Crimson Waste, minding my own business,” Catra scoffed, but they carried on, “when this creepy black portal opened up and dragged me in. Next thing I knew, I landed in front of the ghastly hag and tall, dark, and bony.”

“What did they hire you for?” asked Glimmer.

“Oh, nothing much,” said Double Trouble, shrugging. “Sabotage the long-range scanners on the borders and keep you all distracted for the rest of the day. I figured it would be an easy performance. I wasn’t expecting to see some familiar faces in the crowd,” they added, gesturing to Catra, Glimmer, and Bow.

“Why did Skeletor send you to distract us?” Teela questioned, holding her staff to their neck to emphasize the threat.

Of course, Double Trouble wasn’t the least bit bothered.

“Your guess is as good as mine,” said Double Trouble lazily. “Honestly, with how much they were paying me, I couldn’t care less. Plus, it’s always fun to play with new suckers.”

Teela sneered at them, but before she could do anything, Catra said, “No point in interrogating them. If they knew anything, they would’ve told us by now if they thought it could save their skin. They don’t have a loyal bone in their body.”

“You know, you really shouldn’t get so hung up on the past,” Double Trouble teased.

Teela scowled at the shapeshifter before sharing a look with Catra. With an exasperated sigh, Teela grabbed Double Trouble by the collar and threw them at Ram Man.

“Take this thing to a cell,” Teela ordered. “The last thing we need is a shapeshifting mercenary running loose on Eternia.”

“Yes, ma’am,” said Ram Man, hefting the shapeshifter off the ground with one hand.

“Ooh, handsy,” Double Trouble trilled delightfully. “You know, I’ve had fantasies like this.”

“Please stop talking,” Man-E-Faces pleaded.

Glimmer waited until Double Trouble, Ram Man, and Man-E-Faces were around the corner before whispering to Catra: “You know they’re going to break out by the end of the night, right?”

“I know,” Catra replied in a tired voice.

“Well, that’s one problem squared away,” said Teela, frowning. “Still, I wonder why Skeletor went through all the trouble of bringing a shapeshifter from another planet just to keep us occupied….”

* * *

In the heart of Snake Mountain, Skeletor sat straight-backed in his darkened throne, subconsciously petting Panthor, while observing his newest ally at work. Shadow Weaver, as Skeletor learned, had a gift for scrying, able to conjure visions in a pool of water more accurate and undetectable than Tri-Klops’ Doomseekers. The Crystal of the Crimson Countess glimmered on the witch’s forehead as she churned the waters. They both witnessed Double Trouble’s exposure and subsequent arrest, but Shadow Weaver’s eyes were more carefully drawn to the Magicat than anyone else. Though she made sure her partner did not notice as she wiped away the vision and faced him.

“It seems our little ruse has been found out,” said Shadow Weaver calmly. “The Masters and the Princesses will be suspicious now.”

“Let them,” said Skeletor coolly. “Their paranoia will make them prone to mistakes. Regardless, that…thing did its job admirably. I would almost consider inviting them into my Evil Warriors if I didn’t think they would betray me the first chance they got.”

“Which is why I suggested we keep our plans from them so that they don’t give us away to the enemy,” said Shadow Weaver. “Double Trouble lives up to their name. They are a chaotic force with no allegiance to anyone but themselves. And they’re always looking to gain an upper hand on either side of a fight. I would recommend taking precautionary measures should they attempt to return.”

“Hmm, you may be right,” Skeletor hummed. “And few enchantments around Snake Mountain to disable their shapeshifting powers should suffice. And they’ll be even stronger if our new friends decide to join us. Speaking of which…” Tri-Klops appeared through the entryway just then, bowing to Skeletor. “Well?”

“They have arrived, Lord Skeletor,” Tri-Klops announced. “And with the Master’s long-range scanners dismantled, they were able to remain undetected.”

“Good,” said Skeletor, sounding pleased. “And how many have shown up?”

“…All of them, my lord.”

If he had lips, Skeletor was sure he would be smiling right now.

“Excellent,” said Skeletor, rising from his throne. “Come, you two, we shouldn’t keep our guests waiting.”

The self-proclaimed Master of Evil padded across the throne room with Shadow Weaver and Tri-Klops stepping behind him. They traversed the many catacombs of Snake Mountain, heading deeper into the lower levels where the rivers of magma flowed through the fortress. After winding their way through a labyrinth of dark tunnels for what felt like hours, the passageway opened up to a large, closed off chamber that reminded Skeletor of the Andreenid’s hive. The chamber was thirty feet tall with a raised platform in the middle high above the ground, the walls littered with dozens of openings that led to various underground tunnels.

Tri-Klops and Shadow Weaver dutifully stayed at the entrance while Skeletor climbed the raised platform. Reaching the top, Skeletor took a quick look around the chamber. As to be expected, all of his Evil Warriors were holed up in two groups inside the cave mouths – everyone from Beast Man and Trapjaw to his less recurring soldiers like Stinkor and Two Bad. But it wasn’t just his loyal servants that were present.

In another cave opening near the top, King Hiss gazed down at the skull-faced sorcerer with his arms crossed and his blazing-red eyes staring unblinkingly, surrounded by Kobra Khan and his generals. To Skeletor’s right, Eternian Hordak stood tall and imposing, his expression one of silent judgment, while Evil-Lyn and his own generals stood beside him. The vast majority of the chamber was taken up by the three Giants (Azdar, Belzar, and Chadaz) and rest of the openings were occupied by the various independent villains from around Eternia. Count Marzo, Evilseed, Mortella, Shokoti, the Evil Mutants – every villain that the Masters of the Universe had crossed in these long four years.

Skeletor chuckled in wicked delight.

“Ladies and gentlemen, I am so pleased that you could all make it,” said Skeletor pleasantly. “So…shall we get down to business?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I honestly have no excuse for why it’s taken me so long to get this chapter up. I lost motivation for a while and went to work on other things. But now I’m back and newly inspired by Season 5. Hopefully next time I won’t take so long – fingers crossed.
> 
> And, of course, I couldn’t resist putting Catra in her “Future Dream” suit from season 5. Whatever evil atrocities she might have done, you can always forgive her because she looks fabulous in everything. :D
> 
> In the next chapter, the Royal family heads into the Evergreen Forest for Adam and Adora's birthday to make up for lost time. But their peaceful jaunt through the woods quickly turns into a battle for survival when they encounter the surprising pair of Count Marzo and Evilseed.


	10. Family Matters

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I want to start off by saying I am SICK of people asking me where certain characters are every chapter and telling me to bring them in already! There's a little thing called story progression, and constantly badgering me about it ISN'T going to make me write this any faster! Do you have ANY idea how difficult to write 10,000 plus words for every original chapter while trying to maintain a cohesive plot?!

When Adora learned that King Randor and Queen Marlena (She was still adjusting to the idea of calling them ‘Mom’ and ‘Dad’) were taking her and Adam to spend the day at the Evergreen Forest, the Princess of Power was practically buzzing with energy that Catra literally had to hold her down before she fell out of her seat at breakfast.

Between crash landing on Eternia, searching for her missing friends, and fighting new villains left and right, Adora hasn’t had the chance to spend time with her family. She got along fine with Adam, despite his laissez-faire outlook clashing with Adora’s rigid personality, but her parents were a separate entity. The closest thing Adora had to a parent was Shadow Weaver, and she would rather not linger on those thoughts. Angella had become somewhat of a parental figure during the years before she disappeared through the portal, but there was always an invisible line that Adora dared not to cross (she was the queen and Adora was a soldier in her mind). But now she had a chance to build a bond with her parents – her _real_ parents! – and she didn’t want to disappoint them.

That’s how Adam found her stooped over the desk in her room, tongue poking out in concentration as she drew up what seemed like a hundred different battle plans like she was preparing to go to war. The young prince shook his head at her ridiculousness before grabbing Adora by the collar and literally dragging her out of the room.

“C’mon, the ship’s leaving in a few minutes,” said Adam.

“Wait! I didn’t account for the number of finger sandwiches!” Adora cried, flailing uselessly in her brother’s grip.

This was going to be an interesting birthday for sure, Adam thought.

* * *

There was a hint of nostalgia is Adora’s heart as Randor landed their aircraft (a Wind Raider, Adam called it) near the border of the Evergreen Forest. It reminded her of the Whispering Woods that surrounded Bright Moon back on Etheria.

While the colors were still muted compared to the vibrant shades of Etheria, it didn’t take away from the forest’s natural beauty. An ocean of green trees stretched beyond the horizon, many sprouting strange-looking fruits that looked visually appealing (except the green pear-like fruit with purple spots.) There were a few flowering shrubs here and there and if she listened carefully enough, Adora could hear the sound of a gentle stream nearby.

“Welcome to the Evergreen Forest, Adora,” said Randor brightly clapping his daughter’s shoulders as they approached the edge of the trees. “Eternia’s last unexplored territory. Well, at least on the Light Hemisphere. What do you think?”

“It reminds me of the Whispering Woods back home,” Adora admitted. She suddenly cringed when she realized what she said and quickly sputtered, “I – I mean, my old home! Back on Etheria! Not that I don’t consider Eternia my home – because it is! What I meant to say was – “

“It’s quite all right, Adora,” said Marlena, giggling at her daughter flushed with embarrassment. “Your father and I thought it would be nice to spend the day exploring the forest ourselves as a family activity. And maybe have a nice little lunch together,” she added, holding up a large bag she had hanging from her arm.

“Pretty funny how you two decided to pick _today _to go exploring,” said Adam humorously, nudging his sister. “Right, Adora?”

“Is…there something wrong with today?” Adora asked cluelessly.

Oh, that’s right, Adam remembered. Adora wouldn’t know that today was their birthday, not that it would’ve mattered before now. From what he learned based on Adora and Catra’s stories, the Horde never had birthdays, or parties, or happiness in general. And even after leaving the Horde, Adora never had the chance to celebrate, being too busy fighting a war for the fate of their world. Adam was already aware that all their friends would be throwing a huge party when they got back, but why spoil the surprise for Adora. The young prince just grinned knowingly, clapping her back good-naturedly.

“Oh, it’s nothing,” said Adam whimsically, earning a confused stare from Adora.

“Let’s go inside, shall we?” said Randor quickly, hoping to distract Adora before his careless son gave everything away.

They tread through the woods at a leisurely pace, following the unrealistically convenient dirt path between the trees. While Randor, Marlena, and Adam walked ahead, Adora lagged behind, trying to take in as much of the scenery as she could, her eyes practically sparkling with excitement. As they walked deeper into the woods, many curious faces were slowly coming out of the bushes, wanting a peek at their guests. While the Whispering Woods had its fair share of amazing creatures – both adorable and terrifying – Eternia had its own astonishing array of wildlife.

As she and Adam hopped over an exposed root of a gnarled tree, a four-legged creature resembling a combination of a gecko and a frog crawled the trunk next to her hand, blinked as her with its bulbous eyes, then slowly blended into the background. They spotted a four-winged red bird stabbing its long beak into a fruit the size of Adora’s head and sucking out the juices. A pack of six-legged deer-like creatures with two-toned fur (blue and pink) were jumping like grasshoppers, passing through the trees harmlessly like ghosts. But Adora nearly jumped out of her skin when a massive red dragon the size of Bright Moon castle flew overhead, flapping its massive wings and disappeared over the horizon. Adam laughed, which earned a glare and a punch to the shoulder from his twin.

“Ow! Relax, would ya?” said Adam, still laughing while rubbing his shoulder. “Most dragons are friendly to humans…as long as you don’t make them mad.”

“Well, we don’t have dragons on Etheria, okay?” said Adora, crossing her arms with a pout. “Except a past She-Ra who apparently got a pet dragon. It’s not like I’m jealous or anything….”

“You and Catra really are made for each other,” Adam laughed, ducking another swing.

“Glad to see you two are enjoying yourselves,” said Randor humorously as he and Marlena watched their son trying to run away from their daughter. “So, Adora, you’ve been around Eternia for a couple weeks now. What do you think of it so far?”

Marlena looked at her husband out of the corner of her eyes with a quirked brow. Randor was rarely one to initiate small talk outside of Eternian politics, and that was because he was so bad at it. She could tell he was uncomfortably, shifting his weight back and forth on his feet, his beard twitching as he stared awkwardly at Adora. Marlena picked it up right away: he was afraid of talking to his daughter. He had no idea what to say to the child that he had missed sorely for the last twenty years. To Adora, they were just a couple of strangers who just called themselves her parents. Merlana touched her husband’s hand supportively, which seemed to relax him only a little.

Thankfully, Adora didn’t seem to notice the tension between them as she stopped trying to strangle her brother, looking thoughtful.

“Well, I haven’t exactly seen _all_ of Eternia,” said Adora, counting off her finger. “I smashed into Snake Mountain, got lost in Castle Grayskull, and I visited The Ice Mountains and the Horde Zone, and I spent both of those trips fighting bad guys…. Eternos is pretty cool! The castle is bigger than the one in Bright Moon and the people in town are friendly! But if I’m being honest,” she made a sweeping motion around her, “I think I kinda like this forest just a little better. It’s so…so…ugh, what’s the word I’m looking for?”

“Magical?” Adam offered.

“That’s it!” Adora shouted. “It reminds me of the woods back home – er, I mean, Etheria.”

“I’m glad you’re enjoying it,” said Marlena, smiling. “This place is very special to your father and I as well. You know, your father proposed to me in the Evergreen Forest.”

“Really?” Adora gasped, immediately running over and staring up at her father, eyes practically sparkling. “You proposed to mom here? That’s so cute! How did you do it? Did you serenade her? Moonlit dinner? Take her riding on a dragon?”

“You really want that dragon, don’t you?” Adam teased her; Adora shushed him.

“Well, it um…It wasn’t _that_ big of a deal,” said Random, scratching the back of her head and looking away uneasily. “It was...you know…just a normal proposal.”

“Hmm…it certainly _seemed _like a big deal at the time,” Marlena hummed with a conspiratorial grin. Adam and Adora stared curiously. Marlena ignored her husband’s betrayed look and continued, “This happened a year after the Council of Elders vanished and Skeletor’s forces were sealed to the Dark Hemisphere. We had already been seeing each other for three years even though Captain Miro wasn’t particularly fond of an off-worlder – “

“Off-worlder?” Adam repeated inquisitively.

“A story for another time,” said Marlena cryptically. “Anyway, he decided to bring me to the Evergreen Forest for an outing. He looked so nervous; he was practically sweating a waterfall.” Marlena laughed, Randor groaned into his hand. “We were sitting by the river when suddenly gets up on one knee and reaches for his back pocket. Unfortunately, his hands were so sweaty, the ring slipped out of his fingers and into the river.”

“No!” Adora gasped, fighting back the urge to laugh.

“Yes,” Marlena affirmed, chuckling. “When he tried to recover it, a fish must have been attracted by the glint of rib, because it ended up swallowing it whole. You should have seen the look on your father’s face – he was so furious at that poor fish. He jumped straight into the river and chased after it for a half-mile.”

“I am going to hold this over your head for the rest of my life, father,” said Adam, grinning.

“Unless you have somewhere else to live, I suggest you reconsider that,” Randor glowered; Adam raised his hands in mock surrender.

“He never did catch that fish,” said Marlena amusingly. “Your father was disappointed that he lost the ring, but I told him I didn’t need a fancy piece of jewelry to know that he loved me. So, your father plucked a flower, wove it into a ring, and proposed again.” She stood on her toes and kissed his husband affectionately. “And we have been happy ever since.”

“You two are so lucky to have found each other,” said Adora softly, absently touching her blue betrothal crystal. “I hope Catra and I will be just as happy as you are twenty years from now.”

“I’m sure you will,” said Marlena affectionately, subtly elbowing Randor, who grimaced at Catra’s name. The queen approached Adora, taking her daughter’s hands into her own. “You two found each other in a dark and turbulent time. You both have hurt each other in the past, but the fact that you allow yourselves to be together after everything is proof of how genuine your love is. I know you two will last forever…. And give us lots and lots of little grand kittens!”

“_MOM!”_ Adora shrieked, playing with her fingers sheepishly. “I mean, maybe someday – not anytime soon, mind you – we’ve talked about it before – but it’s nothing serious – not like we plan to have a daughter named Mara and a nonbinary child named Finn….”

“Aw, just imagine all this little blonde kitty cats with the cute little ears and fluffy tails,” Adam added teasingly. “That would be so _adora-ble._”

“Yeah, laugh it up, chuckles,” Adora grumbled, leering at her twin doubled over in laughter. “At least I have the guts to tell Catra I love her. When are you gonna say something to Teela, huh?”

“Wha – Teela?!” Adam sputtered, pink dusting his cheeks. “Whoa, whoa, whoa, hold on there! Teela and I are…you know! Like that!”

“Adora has a point, Adam,” Randor joined in, his beard twitching amusingly. “Teela is a strong and beautiful young woman with plenty of admirers. You had best make a move soon before someone else does. After all,” he pulled Marlena closer, “A king is only as strong as his queen.”

“Not you, too!” Adam groaned as his family laughed at his expense.

But while Adam’s family relentlessly tormented him, they remained unaware of the cloaked figure lurking in the shadow of the trees, watching them. They leaned around cautiously, their hand gripping the tree threatening to tear the bark, a strong desire to attack the happy family swelling up in his chest. But they pushed these feelings down immediately. They did not come here to fight – at least not yet. They had something else that needed to be done first. Slowly, reluctantly, the cloaked figure pushed off the tree, spinning around, and trekked deeper into the woods.

They weaved through the trees with purpose, pushing through the bush and low branches without pause. The wildlife scattered as he walked by, terrified by his mere presence; even the greater beasts that roamed the forest gave them a wide berth. After walking for several minutes, the cloaked figure came up to small, secluded area in the middle of the dense woodland that was clear of any vegetation. The ground was dry and barren like a desert, contrasting against the healthy green grass that surrounded it. In the middle of this dry patch was a single, withering flower, its petals black like the night and so frail-looking that even the gentlest wind could knock it over.

“Ah, there you are, my old friend,” the cloaked figure spoke in a deep, rumbling voice. “Do not worry, I will have you out in a moment.”

The man pushed his cloak aside, holding out his hand, which was clutching an amulet of crimson-red with a clawed foot imprinted on the surface. Pointing the amulet at the dying flower, he muttered an incantation in demonic tongue, his voice echoing through the trees. His amulet illuminated in a scarlet glow before a bolt of colored lightning shot from his hand, striking down the flower. The black flower, which had been on the verge of death, rose on its stalk, its black petals blooming it a way that was both beautiful and ominous.

When the ground suddenly began to rumble beneath his feet, the cloaked man lowered his arm and took a step back as the dirt began to rise. A cage emerged from the ground, made from thick, gnarled branches, covered in heavy layers of moss, and chained together by thorny brambles. The cloaked figure approached the cage, peering through the makeshift bars…and quickly jumped back when a clawed hand covered in thorns reached for him.

“Gah! Release me!” The prisoner screamed furiously, swiping his hands fruitlessly at the stranger. “Let me out of here, or I will make you suffer slowly!”

The cloaked figure laughed loudly, and said, “Now, now, Evilseed, is that any way to talk to your savior?”

The prisoner, Evilseed, withdrew his arm and pressed his face against the bars, his planty-skin and vine-like hair looking just as withered as the flower had been. His ‘savior’ pulled back his hood, revealing the bearded face and burning-red eyes of an old accomplice.

“Count Marzo,” Evilseed hissed. “What are you doing here?”

“I already said it before: rescuing you,” said Count Marzo with a wicked chuckle. “Say, you don’t look so good, old friend. Have you been getting enough sunlight?”

“I have been imprisoned for _two – years!_” Evilseed snarled. “A fact that you knew full well as you stood aside and watched Moss Man bound me here! So why, after all this time, have you chosen to free me now?!”

“This was at Skeletor’s request,” said Count Marzo passively. “He wants all the villains of Eternia to gather at Snake Mountain. He was even kind enough to distract the Masters of the Universe so we could gather unnoticed.”

“Is he now?” Evilseed chirped thoughtfully. “Is he planning to start another Council of Evil?”

“Seems that way,” said Count Marzo, nodding. “Now, stand back.”

Evilseed does what he’s told as Count Marzo held out his amulet again. The dark sorcerer summoned an orb of black flames in the air, which he thrust into the wooden cage, setting it aflame. The dark blaze chewed away at the branches and vines, snapping and crackling, while Evilseed remained unharmed despite the close quarters. A section of the cage breaks offs, creating a sizable gap through Evilseed launches himself out, falling flat on the ground with a weakened moan. He rose to his hands and knees, wheezing, his body shaking, when he looks up at the patch of green grass only feet away.

The villainous plant scrambles to the grass like a dying man to an oasis. Once on the grass, he digs his claws into the dirt, extending them underground. He steadily draws the water and nutrients from the dirt, feeling them coursing through his veins. His wither skin becomes taut, the color returning, his muscles expanding underneath. Now properly nourished, Evilseed rose to his feet with a triumphant cackle.

“Yes! I can feel ‘The Green’ again!” he screamed. “It’s just as delicious as I remember it!”

“Okay, no need to be so dramatic,” Count Marzo scoffed. “Come, we must return to Snake Mountain at once before the Masters become aware of us.”

“And join Skeletor’s rehashed version of his failed Council of Evil?” said Evilseed disdainfully. “After what happened last time, not interested.”

“But Hiss and Hordak will also be there,” Count Marzo informed him; Evilseed rounded on him, wide-eyed. “I know, I was just as surprised as you are. Skeletor, Hiss, Hordak hate each other, but if they are willing to put aside their differences to meet, then we should consider it as well.”

Evilseed hummed thoughtfully for a moment, muttering to himself, “That’s something I never would have seen coming. If Eternia’s three greatest masters of evil are joining forces….”

“Then it would be prudent for us to join them,” added Count Marzo, crossing his arms impatiently. “Let me put it this way: it would be better to be _with _them than _against_ if you catch my meaning.”

“Yeah, I get it,” Evilseed grumbled, clenching his fist. “Although I had planned to take my revenge of He-Man first after he and Moss Man imprisoned me years ago. If I could have just one moment with him….”

“Hmm…,” Count Marzo hummed, stroking his beard thoughtfully. “Well…you may just be in luck, old friend. I happen to see He-Man somewhere in the forest along with his family, _including _that new warrior that arrived from the other world above. I think her name was…She-Ra or something like that? I sure Skeletor wouldn’t mind if we took a quick detour.”

“He-Man’s family,” Evilseed, quirking what would have been his brow. “She-Ra? Other wor – “ He tilted his head back, taking note of the colorful that that orbited Eternia that he was certain wasn’t there two years ago. “What in the name of ‘The Green’ is going on around here?!”

“You’ve been away for a long time, my friend,” said Count Marzo, chortling, steering the villainous weed by the shoulder. “I’ll explain along the way….”

* * *

The royal family walked through the woods until they came upon a small cleaning next to the river that flowed through the forest (Adam asked if it was the same spot as when Randor proposed, which his mother confirmed, to her husband’s lamentation.) From the large bag she was carrying, Marlena produced a checkered blanket that she and Randor spread out on the ground, then laid out the various containers of Eternian food stuff, much of which Adora had never seen before. The Princess of Power nearly squealed in excitement; picnics were a rare treat when the Rebellion had down time during the war and Catra had taken Adora on one during their first real date after Horde Prime’s defeat (though it escalated into a food fight.)

For a quarter of an hour, they sat around leisurely, exchanging stories of their lives before the appearance of Etheria in the Eternian sky. Adam was in the middle of a tale of how Man-At-Arms had been turned into a pig by the dark sorceress Shokoti and the only way to turn him back was by Teela singing.

“Oh my god, did she do it?” asked Adora excitedly, laughing at the thought of the stoic warriors singing.

“Oh, she did it, all right, but not before we literally had to drag her on stage,” said Adam, snickering. “But when she got up there are started singing her heart out…I thought my ears were going to bleed. It was the worst thing I ever heard. Teela can go toe-to-toe with Skeletor, but she can’t carry a tune to save her life. Luckily, Shokoti was too busy covering her ears that she didn’t see Mekaneck sneak up behind her and hit her over the head. We threatened to have Teela sing some more if she didn’t turn Man-At-Arms back to normal.”

“So that’s why I’ve been seeing Teela practice in the corner of the gardens when she thinks nobody’s looking,” said Marlena, giggling.

“She has never been one to accept failure,” said Randor amusingly, “even at the most unnecessary activities.”

“Catra would probably say I’m the same,” said Adora. “Which is totally and completely wrong. I don’t have a problem with fa – fa – I mean, fai…. That word.”

“Wow, you physically can’t say the word ‘failure’?” Adam chortled.

“I can totally say…that word!” Adora shouted defensively, her face flushed with embarrassment. “I just…don’t need to right now! That’s all!”

“_Riiight_,” Adam teased, laughing and ducked when Adora threw a sandwich at his head.

“Adam, stop picking on your sister,” said Marlena while laughing herself.

“But it’s so much fun!” said Adam amusing as Adora threw another sandwich at him.

“Ooh, you are so annoying!” Adora complained. “It’s a wonder you and Catra don’t get along. You two are so much alike. I remember this one time when we were ten in the Fright Zone and Catra pulled this dumb prank on kyle – “

Adora suddenly trailed off as she reached for the egg salad (“How can it be a salad if it’s yellow?” Adora asked earlier) only to pull her hand back swiftly when she realized Randor was reaching for the same thing. The King of Eternia also pulled his hand away like he had been electrocuted. The two of them sputtered anxious apologizes and insisted the other take it for themselves, both of whom politely declined and returned the offer back and forth. And after a few minutes, neither of them took the egg salad, instead looking at the ground in awkward silence.

Adam and Marlena looked at one another out of the corners of their eyes, frowning. The queen shot her son a meaningful look, silently gesturing to Adora, who was nervously wrangling her hands. The young prince nodded in understanding, shuffling up to his feet and stretching his arms above his head exaggeratedly.

“Oh man, I am _stuffed_!” Adam announced loudly, patting his stomach in emphasis. “I’m gonna need to walk this off. Hey, Adora, wanna join me? I could show you some of my favorite spots around the forest.”

“Uh…sure, yeah, let’s do that!” Adora agreed almost too quickly, shooting up to her feet like a spring. “Yeah, because exercising after a meal is good and healthy and – “

“Okay, now you’re just making everyone uncomfortable,” said Adam bluntly, pulled her backwards by the collar.

Adam dragged his twin through the trees, who was unhelpfully dragging her heels in the grass instead of walking like a normal person. He waited until her was out of earshot of their parents before Adam let go, running a hand though his hair with an exhausted sigh.

“Okay, I think we can both admit that small talk is not your thing,” said Adam. “Maybe when we get back, we could – did you really bring battle plans to a picnic,” he asked suddenly when he realized Adora was pouring over a very detailed blueprint filled with shapes and dotted lines.

“Battle plans make things easier!” Adora declared defensively, her eyes flying back and forth across the map.

“Okay, time a brother-sister talk,” said Adam exasperatedly. When his twin wouldn’t look up from her ‘war plans’, Adam snatched them out of her hands and held them out of reach when Adora tried to grab them. “What’s going on with you. I know we’ve only known each other for a couple weeks, but you seem more on edge than usual. And we fought Skeletor together. What’s going on?”

“Nothing! Nothing’s wrong!” Adora yelled while practically throwing herself on Adam to reach her plans. “It’s just…a little hobby of mine. Catra always says it’s dumb, but I think it’s – “

“Adora,” Adam spoke in an accusatory tone. “Tell me the truth.”

Adora stopped jumping and visibly deflated. She took a couple steps back, rubbing her arms, and glancing miserably off to the side. Adam wrapped his arm around her comfortingly, waiting patiently until she spoke.

“I just…really want them to like me, you know?” Adora mumbled. “Mom and dad, I mean.”

“What?” said Adam, chuckling slightly. “You don’t need to do that. They already like you.”

“They don’t even know me,” Adora murmured sadly. “I was ripped away from our family when I was less than a day old. It’s different for you because mom and dad were always around when you were growing up, raising you, telling you they love you, and all the other things parents do. I didn’t have that. I was raised in the Horde, remember? I don’t know what it’s like to have parents.”

“You didn’t have anyone who raised you in the Horde?” Adam asked, visibly concerned.

“The closest thing I had to a parent was Shadow Weaver,” Adora answered, grimacing at the thought of the menacing witch. “But she was an abusive monster. She didn’t hurt me physically like she did Catra, but she…she messed with my head…made me think I wasn’t worthy anything unless I’m useful to someone. Made me think a wasn’t worth living if I did do everything for others.” She rubbed her arms again, as if she were scrubbing off something undesirable. “I’m trying to get better. Netossa and Spinnerella have been teaching me that it’s okay to be selfish, and Catra is always around to knock some sense into me when my ‘hero complex’ rears its ugly head, but…it’s not something that’s easy to let go of, you know? Part of me is worried that if I don’t prove I’m worth it, mom and dad won’t like me….”

“That’s ridiculous,” said Adam firmly, grabbing her by the shoulders and forcing her to look at him. “Mother and Father don’t expect anything from you – okay, that sounds bad in context, but you know what I mean. They’ve lived the last twenty years thinking their daughter was gone forever, and now that you’re back, they want to get to know you. Not how you can be useful to them, but just plain, old Adora with her goofy hair poof.”

“Why does everyone make fun of my hair?!” Adora complained loudly. Adam laughed out loud; Adora slapped his arm playfully. “And…thanks, bro. For talking me down.”

“That’s what family’s for,” said Adam proudly. He looked over Adora’s plans, which were still in his hands. “I can’t believe you actually made a battle strategy for a picnic. Who does that?”

* * *

“Did you really make a battle plan for our family outing, Randor?” Marlena asked her husband with a dry look.

“Battle plans make things easier!” Randor declared defensively, his eyes roaming back and forth across the paper. “Hmm, how about – no, that might make a mess. Fishing? Does she even like fish? What about - ?”

“Randor,” Marlena said exasperatedly, ripping the plans form his hands (“Hey!” Randor cried.) “This is becoming ludicrous. The idea was to spend the afternoon with _both_ of out children, but you’ve been avoiding Adora like a shy schoolgirl, which is not an image I want in my head.” The king of Eternia hanged his head remorsefully. Marlena sighed, resting her hand on top of her husband’s. “What’s the matter, Randor? I thought you wanted this.”

“I do,” said Randor. “It’s just…what am I supposed to say to her? What _can _I say to her?”

“How about, ‘Hello, I’m your father’ for starters,” said Marlena teasingly.

“I’m serious, Marlena,” said Randor, frowning. “For the last twenty years, I have dreamed of finding our daughter again and for our family to be whole. But now that she’s here…I realize that she doesn’t need us. She doesn’t need me.”

“Why would you say that?” asked Marlena sadly.

“She spent the last twenty years on an alien world making a life or herself,” said Randor. “A life without us. I know it wasn’t all good based on the stories they told us, but I’m just now realizing that we don’t really have anything to offer her. She made a home for herself, made friends, fought in a war, became a hero – she’s getting married, for Grayskull’s sake! And we were never around for any of it. She…she doesn’t need us…. She never did….”

“Oh, Randor,” said Marlena softly, turning his head toward her. “I understand how you feel. We thought she was gone forever and then she suddenly just falls into our laps. It’s enough to turn anyone’s heads. But you are wrong in thinking we have nothing to offer her. Because we do. Something that she’s never had before.”

“What’s that?” asked Randor.

“A mother and father who love her dearly,” said Marlena. “You heard the stories of how dreadful life was for her in the Fright Zone. She had never known true parental affection, and I think part of the reason you and her are having a difficult time is because she doesn’t know how to respond to love without strings attached. That is why we must show her that our love is not something that needs to be earned, but is freely given. It’s not going to change overnight, but as long as we keep working at it, our feelings will get through to her eventually. That requires you to make an effort on your part as well,” she added, leering at him accusingly.

“You’re right, you’re right,” Randor nodded, grinning softly. “How did you get to be so brilliant?”

“Did you forget how we first met?” said Marlena teasingly.

Randor chuckled amusing and embraced his wife, feeling much lighter than he had moments ago.

And, unfortunately, the king and queen were too lost in their own world to notice the vines creeping along the forest floor toward them….

* * *

Adam was laughing himself silly as he dangled Adora’s “battle strategy” away with one hand while pushing back his sister with the other; the Princess of Power stretching fruitlessly to grab them. The fun and games (for Adam) were quickly pushed aside when they heard a strangled shrieked through the trees and the distinctive yell of “_Marlena!_”

“Mother and father!” Adam realized horrifically. “They’re in trouble!”

Adam and Adora ran frantically back the path they came from, returning to the clearing by the river and dragged their feet on the ground to come to a screeching halt. The twins tilted their heads back as Marlena was lifted into the air by tangle of vines around her waist like a leafy python; the queen grimaced in her attempt to rip the plants off. Randor had his arms and legs bound by tree branches, raising him above the canopy like a trophy. Adam and Adora drew their swords, the princess staring open-mouthed at the scene.

“Is this normal?” Adora said inquisitively.

“No,” Adam answered. “At least not in this part of the forest.”

The twin surged forward to aid their parents when the ground exploded beneath their feet, forcing them to jump back defensively. A wild mesh of thorny roots rose from the dirt like wiggly snakes, turning their sharp ends at the twins and lunging forward.

Adam flipped over the first root, cleaving it with his sword, rolled forward tox dodge the second, then stabbed a third that came at his from the side. Adora tried swinging her sword at the oncoming roots, but her swipes were slower than Adam’s and enabled the roots to duck underneath, striking her in the stomach. The Princess of Power slid backward on her feet, holding her stomach, but remained standing. When the roots rounded for another attack, Adora instinctively shifted her blade into its shield form, deflecting the branches away. Adam jumped in a moment later, slicing all of the roots converging on his sister in one stroke.

Unfortunately, he neglected to notice one of the vines slithering near his foot until it snapped around his ankle, lifting him sharply into the air before he could catch his bearings. He was dangling several feet in the air, his head spinning from the sudden rush, when he realized that his hand was surprisingly light. The young prince tilted his head back toward the ground, finding his Sword of Power stabbed into the dirt below. But that was the least of his concerns at the moment when he heard the rustling of several prickly vines slithering menacingly toward him.

A glint of light caught his attention out of the corner of his eye and the sound of _swooshing _in the air. A blur of silver flashed across the vines, slicing the ends off, then curved in the air to cut the root holding up Adam. The Prince of Eternia gracefully flipped around as he dropped, landing safely on the ground at a crouch, having coincidentally fallen next to his sword. He prie4d the Sword of Power out of the dirt as Adora ran up to him, catching the twirling object out of the air, which had turned out to be a bladed boomerang before shifting back to its sword form.

“Boomerang? Nice,” Adam complimented.

“I learned it from some scraggly boy with a ponytail in the Kingdom of Snows,” said Adora, grinning. The twins struck defensive stances as the trees creaked to life, seemingly making themselves bigger, still holding the king and queen in the air. “Something’s wrong. Even for a magic forest, this is too much to be natural.”

“You’re right about that,” Adam agreed, taking a cautious step back. “It’s almost like they’re being controlled. But the only people who can control plants are Moss Man and – “

As if waiting for his cue, Evilseed made his grand entrance from the shroud of the canopy, rising above the treetops dramatically upon a tangled weave of thorny vines, throwing back his head and cackling madly. He peered down at the royal twins; the holes representing his mouth curled into a dark grin.

“Well, well, look at the pest I found wandering in my garden!” Evilseed screeched. “Long time no see, little prince. Or should I say…He-Man!”

“Evilseed,” muttered Adam.

“Who?” asked Adora, blinking confused.

“Evilseed – one of my earliest enemies,” Adam explained. “He has the power to control plant life, which makes him extremely dangerous, especially when we’re in the middle of a forest. Moss Man and I sealed him away two years ago, but it looks like he got out again. Honestly, I’m surprised it’s taken him this long, considering how easily villains seem to be escaping these days.”

“So…his name is Evilseed, he’s a bad guy, and he controls plants,” Adora repeated, muffling a snicker. “Isn’t that name a little on the nose?”

“You mean like _Catra _or _Glimmer_ or _Bow_?” Adam retorted.

“…Point taken,” said Adora; Etherians really _do_ have a terrible sense for names.

“I have been counting the days when I would finally have my revenge, He-Man,” Evilseed hissed venomously. “Two years, I’ve been trapped underneath the ground, alone with my thoughts, awaiting the time when I would inevitably be set free. Oh, I’ve plotted many ways of how I would destroy you, He-Man. But never in my wildest dreams would I have ever imagined that the mightiest warrior in the universe was little more than a simpering little prince – “

“I’m starting to feel left out here,” Adora mumbled.

“Fortune smiles on me,” said Evilseed. Lifting his clawed hand, he pulls the branches holding Marlena and Randor closer. “That you just _happen _to be nearby on the day on my early release. First, I will make you watch your family suffer before I destroy you, He-Man!”

“And She-Ra,” Adora grumbled, annoyed.

“Never gonna happen, Evilseed!” Adam decalred firmly, raising his sword above his head. “**_By the power – _**“

“**_For the honor – _**“ shouted Adora, following her brother’s example.

But their synchronized incantations were swift brought to a halt when a shower of red lightning shot out of the shadow of the trees, striking the twins in the chest. Adam and Adora cried out as electricity surged through their nerves, paralyzing them, and forced them to unwillingly drop their weapons on the ground. The blonde twins fell forward on their stomach, red lightning ceaselessly crawling over their bodies. They heard a deep, rumbling laughter and a pair of boots stepped into their vision. Adam struggled to raise his head, grimacing, and stared up at the flaming-red eyes of another one of his many enemies.

“Count Marzo…,” Adam grunted.

“Another friend of yours?” said Adora,

“Ah, the mighty He-Man, fallen so easily,” Count Marzo cackled. He rested his boot on top of Adam’s head, pressing the prince’s face into the ground. “You have no idea how many times I’ve dreamed of having you under my boot just like this. Not so tough without your precious sword, are you?”

“You know, I’m here, too,” said Adora, pouting.

“That explains how Evilseed managed to get out,” said Adam, wincing. “So why’d you do it, Marzo? Why’d you let Evilseed loose. You two weren’t exactly buddies last time I checked.”

“That is none of your business,” said Count Marzo, stomping on Adam’s head. “All that matters is that we will finally rid Eternia of its champion, He-Man!”

“It’s like I don’t even exist,” Adora grumbled.

The malevolent warlock pressed down harder on Adam’s skull, applying the pressure slowly to prolong the prince’s pain. He could have easily killed Adam with his magic, but both he and Evilseed had waited four years for this moment, and they wanted to savor every agonizing scream. But Adam proved to be more resilient than either of them expected. Even with his skull threatening to break, he bit his tongue and refused to utter a single cry. Annoyed, Count Marzo stomped on his head again and managed to drag out a muffled squeak, but Adam did not give in. Adora felt completely useless as she watched her twin take the beating, her own body refusing to listen as the red lightning froze her body stiff. Her Sword of Protection was only a few inches away from her hand. If only she could….

Evilseed cackled wildly as he watched the scene play out, dangling Randor and Marlena next to him so they could get the best view. Randor gritted his teeth, leering sideways at the villainous plant, but his expression turned to determination as he turned his attention to his queen, nodding silently. Marlena nodded in return, equally determined. Once she was certain Evilseed was not paying attention, the Queen of Eternia reached underneath the skirt of her dress and pulled out a long, ornate dagger. Marlena stabbed the vines wrapped around her waist and dragged the blade down, cleaving the plants to break free. She then dropped down on top of Evilseed and stabbed her dagger into his shoulder, rewarding her with a high-pitched shriek of pain. Evilseed stumbled forward, the dagger still in his shoulder, green blood dripping from the wound, and spun around to face Marlena with a shock look.

“What in the name of – “

But his words were cut short when Marlena kicked him across the face with a roundhouse kick, launching him off the vines.

Count Marzo was so focused on torturing his old enemy that he didn’t see Evilseed coming until the two villains collided, sending them sprawling to the ground. The red lightning binding them flicked and vanished; Adam and Adora could move again.

They scrambled to their feet, picking their power swords off the ground. They looked up to see Marlena climbing down the tower of vines using the exaggeratedly large thorns as stepping stones, but Randor was still locked in place by the tree branches. One flashy transformation later, and Adora pulled back her Boomerang of Protection and sent it sailing through the air. There’s no explaining how Adora managed to spin the weapon in a way that managed to cut all of Randor’s binding, but as the King dropped and landed his feet safely on the ground, Adam found his didn’t care. He and Adora ran over to their parents as Marlena hopped off the final thorn, immediately pulling her children into a strong embrace.

“Way to go, mom!” Adam cheered when they broke apart.

“That was amazing,” Adora said in awe. “Do you always carry a knife with you?”

“I never go anywhere without a little protection – even have one tucked under my pillow just in case,” said Marlena with a wink; Adora was so happy she could cry.

“Everyone always learns the hard way that my queen is no damsel in distress,” said Randor proudly, kissing her temple.

Count Marzo roared furiously as he pushed Evilseed off, drawing the royal family’s attention. The dark warlock sat up with an irritated glare ax Evilseed, who pulled the dagger out of his shoulder with a grimace and tossed it aside. The villains rose to their feet and realized that not only were the heroes free, but Adam and Adora had regained their swords, which were now pointed at them.

“You imbecile!” Count Marzo howled at Evilseed. “How could you let them get the best of you?!”

“Don’t pin this on me, Marzo!” Evilseed snapped, jabbed a clawed finger at the wizard’s chest. “You’re the one who was taking his sweet time pruning the weeds! You should know that always comes back to bite you in the roots!”

“You didn’t seem to be having a problem with it a moment ago!” Marzo growled.

“Quick, while they’re distracted,” Randor said quietly to his family. “Marlena, head back to the Wind Raider and send a message back to Eternos. We may need back-up. Adam, Adora, I’ll leave you two with Evilseed. He’s powerful enough alone, but together He-Man and She-Ra might be able to take him.”

“What about Marzo?” asked Adam.

“Leave him to me,” said Randor firmly. “Now, go!”

Marlena took off into the forest and Randor charged into the bickering villains. Count Marzo was lost in his heated argument with his cohort that he didn’t see the warrior king run up to him until he slammed his knuckles into Marzo’s face. The dark wizard was thrown backward into the trees, remarkably still standing, though his jaw was throbbing immensely. This time, Count Marzo saw Randor coming and blocking the incoming fist with his forearm, then threw back one of his own. Randor effortlessly caught the fist in his hand, and, outrageously, slammed lurched forward to headbutt the wizard. Count Marzo threw his head back in agony, sporting a nosebleed, before Randor pulled the warlock over his shoulder and slammed him to the ground with an audible _thud!_

Evilseed cackled quietly from his spot a few feet away. He could have offered Marzo his help, but there was something satisfying in watching the dark sorcerer getting beaten to a pulp by the king….

“**_By the power/For the Honor – of Grayskull!_**”

Evilseed shielded his eyes from the blinding flash of light that came with He-Man and She-Ra’s transformations. He was unaware as a golden rope flew over and tightened around his chest, binding his arms to his sides. She-Ra smirked triumphantly at Evilseed with He-Man standing stalwart by her side. The Princess of Power tugged hard on the rope, pulling Evilseed off the ground and flinging him toward the twins. As he flew closer, She-Ra removed her rope from the villainous plant before He-Man raised his fist and _pounded _Evilseed in the gut; the surrounding trees trembled from the shockwave made on contact. He-Man followed his punch through and launched Evilseed across the forest, smashing through four trees along the way before stopping at the fifth, falling flat on the ground.

He-Man and She-Ra (returning her weapon to its natural state) paused where they stood, waiting for the eventual retaliation. Evilseed raised himself up to his elbows, glowering at the Twins of Powers. Adora had to admit that cilseed was stronger than he looked – no one on Etheria could have taken a punch like that and remain conscious.

“You should’ve stayed in your cage, Evilseed,” said He-Man, hefting his sword. “Time to whack this weed.”

“…Did…did you just make a plant pun?” asked She-Ra, brow quirked.

“Uh, yeah, it’s...it’s kinda what I do?” said He-Man strangely. “You don’t like it?”

“It’s…not bad,” said She-Ra awkwardly, “but it’s not that great, either. I mean, ‘hack this weed’ is kinda lazy.”

“Well, it’s not easy pulling puns out on the spot,” said He-Man defensively.

“I didn’t mean it like that, I just – “ She-Ra started.

Were these idiots really ignoring it, Evilseed thought, annoyed. They’ll pay for that mistake.

Evilseed buried his claws into the dirt and started grasping for the roots of the forest, bending them to his will. He-Man and She-Ra felt the ground rumbling beneath them and jumped out of the way before a tangled mess of a dozen flytrap-like monsters covered in thorns exploded from the ground. The thorn hydra screeched and lunged at the twins with its multiple heads. He-Man and She-Ra jumped out of the way and took cover behind the surrounding trees, but they provided little protection as the thorn hydra shredded the foliage in an effort to reach them. For someone so hellbent on seeing plant life flourish over humanity, Evilseed seem to care very little about the devastation he was creating, He-Man thought.

He-Man leaped between the roots as they came down around him, slicing two of the flytrap heads flying in his path, only to watch them sprout two more heads each. He landed on one of the heads, driving his sword through the top and slicing the plant monster down the middle before decapitating another coming at him from the left. The Man of Power was practically flying as he jumped between the roots, slashing the heads that came at him. But for every plant beast that he shredded the stalks would just replace them with two more. At some point, He-Man had cut off so many that when he returned to the ground, he was staring into the jaws of over forty flytrap monsters.

“Haven’t you learned anything, He-Man?!” Evilseed cackled. “No matter how many you strike down, more will grow in their place!”

“Oh, I’m aware, Evilseed,” said He-Man, surprisingly smirking. “I figured that out the first time we battled. But I’m not trying to fight your pet. I’m just the distraction.”

Evilseed titled his head, confused. The villainous plant felt someone tapping his shoulder and looked over his shoulder. He didn’t even have the opportunity to look surprised when he saw She-Ra wielding an oversized two-handed hammed before she took a swing. Evilseed was catapulted into the air, screeching frantically. But as he started falling back to the ground, the trees instinctively moved their branches to catch Evilseed, cushioning him in their leaves. Sneering, Evilseed lifted his arms and dozens of thorny roots emerged from the ground like prickly snakes. She-Ra shifted his weapon back to its sword form, carefully glancing over at her brother dealing with the plant monster out of the corner of her eye, before charging forward to meet the villain head-on.

On the opposite end of the clearing, Count Marzo flipped himself over and rose to a kneel, wiping away his bloody nose with an infuriated growl. He rose to his feet as he stared down Randor; the King of Eternia stared the warlock down with his fists raised.

“I wanted to be the one to kill He-Man,” said Count Marzo. “But I suppose I can settle with you, Randor. I will make you pay dearly for the indignity I suffered at your father’s hands.”

“You’ve been nothing but talk so far, Marzo,” said Randor. “How about you try backing up those words.”

“With pleasure,” said Marzo, grinning wickedly.

Count Marzo held up his amulet and shot the king with a bolt of crimson lightning. Randor jumped out of the way as the ground exploded where he once stood, but did not notice Count Marzo running up to him until he was staring directly into his burning-red eyes. The malevolent wizard held up his hand, summoning his sword from nothing, and swiped it down over Randor’s head. Randor reacted remarkably fast, bringing up his forearm to collide with Marzo’s, stopping his sword. Count Marzo tried pushing down with all his strength, but Randor was every bit his physical equal and found themselves locked in a stalemate. The dark wizard sneered as he raised his glowing amulet to the king’s face. Once again, Randor’s quick reflexes saved him as he grabbed Marzo’s wrist and forced it sideways, sending the bolt of lightning flying into one of the trees instead.

“Gah! You and your children are annoyingly stubborn!” Count Marzo snarled.

“A quality I’m quite proud of,” said Randor.

Count Marzo pulled back his sword and took a swing at Randor’s midsection. The king of Eternia moves around behind Marzo quickly while still hold on to the wizard’s other arm, pulling it behind his back. Count Marzo winced, then turned his hand around so that his amulet was pointed at Randor’s head, glowing as the power started to build up inside the trinket. This proved to be a fatal mistake as Randor twisted the Marzo’s further until the warlock was howling in pain, his hand shaking violently and the amulet sputtering inconsistently. It wasn’t until Count Marzo unwillingly released his amulet that Randor loosened his grip and allowed the wizard a chance to breath. While Marzo slumped forward, heaving, Randor kicked the amulet somewhere in the forest out of sight.

“You’re pretty confident when you have that amulet protecting you, Marzo,” said Randor. “Let’s see how well you do without it.”

Randor spun Marzo around and socked him across the face, throwing him back.

She-Ra carved her way through wild tangle of prickly roots by brute forcing it. She cleaved the Sword of Protection back and forth, whittling the brambles away little by little. There were moments in between swings where she was unguarded that the roots lashed at her exposed skin, cutting long gashes. She-Ra brushed off the flittering bouts of discomfort and pushed on. Compared to Catra’s claws raking down her back or Horde Prime burning off the skin of her arm, this was nothing.

The tree branches lowered Evilseed back to the ground, who was growling furiously as the Princess of Power edged closer. As She-Ra broke through the last of his weeds, Evilseed raised his claw to the sky dramatically. A hand made of roots emerged from the ground and grappled She-Ra before she could gather her wits, lifting her high off the ground. Evilseed swiped his hand down with an insane cackle and the roots followed the motion, slamming the Princess of Power with enough force to form a spiderweb of cracks in the ground. She-Ra shook her head to ward of thee momentary daze, looking down and realizing the roots were pinning her down in place. She tried shaking herself out of its grip to no avail as Evilseed stepped into her view, grinning victoriously.

“Did you really think you could beat me alone?!” Evilseed taunted. “I’ve battled He-Man!”

“True,” said She-Ra, smirking. “But can He-Man do this?”

She-Ra flipped the Sword of Protection around in her hand so the tip was pointed at Evilseed. The ancient weapon briefly glowed with a rainbow of light before shooting a concentrated beam at the villain. Evilseed screech as the light washed over him, burning his skin like he had been set ablaze, his vision going pure white. When the beam passed, Evilseed stumbled backward, holding his blinded eyes while smoke wafted from his body. And without Evilseed to focus his powers, the roots holding down She-Ra lost their firmness, allowing her to break loose with just a flex of her arms. The Princess of Power brushed herself off casually as she stood, watching Evilseed fumble around amusingly until he tripped over and exposed root and fell flat on his face.

And thanks to She-Ra’s little trick, He-Man’s battle became exponentially easier.

Without Evilseed’s control, the weed hydra was slower and hesitant to attack, as if it did know what to do. He-Man cut his way through four more of the plant heads before leaping to leaping down to the ground where the monster was attached to the ground. He sliced his Sword of Power through the main body, severing all of the heads from their roots and watched them fall lifelessly to the ground with planet-shaking thuds. And to make sure they wouldn’t grow back, He-Man grabbed the massive stem, ripped it out of the ground by the roots, lifted it over his head, and launched it so far into sky that it looked like it was headed straight for Etheria.

She-Ra’s jaw dropped at the impossibly epic feat of pure strength and mumbled, “That’s still not fair….”

Back with Evilseed, the villainous plant started to rise to his knees, his vision slowly returning, when a great weight was suddenly dumped on top of him and pressed him back to the ground. It was Count Marzo, half of his face swollen with a massive bruise and moaning weakly. Randor shook his hand free of the stinging sensation; Marzo wasn’t a fighter, but he was still tough nonetheless. He-Man and She-Ra appeared beside him, all staring down the defeated villains.

“How…can this be?” Count Marzo groaned. “Together, we are strong enough to defeat He-Man – “

“But you weren’t just fighting me, Marzo,” He-Man declared, resting his hands on his father and sister’s shoulders. “You were fighting my family.”

“He-Man might be strong alone,” said Randor, “but together, our family will never lose to the likes of you.”

“So what’re we gonna do with them?” She-Ra asked, pointing her sword at Marzo and Evilseed as they sat up.

“We’ll call Moss Man and see if he can’t make a more permanently cage for Evilseed,” said He-Man, much to the wicked plant’s ire. “As for Count Marzo, I think there’s enough room in the Eternian prison for one more inmate. But before we do that,” He stepped forward, towering over the villains with his threatening presence. “They’re going to tell us just exactly why they were working together in the first place.”

Count Marzo grumbled under his breath, appearing to contemplate whether or not he should say anything. However, he was spared any explanation when a blast of violet energy struck He-Man from the side and threw him on the ground across the clearing. She-Ra and Randor turned toward the source before they were also blown back. Groaning, the royal family pulled themselves up and looked around.

Evil-Lyn stepped out of the shadows of the trees, her magic staff smoking in one hand and Count Marzo’s amulet clutched in the other. She tossed the trinket to Marzo as the wicked warlock rose to his feet, grinning devilishly, and pulled the partially blinded Evilseed to his feet.

“Hey, that’s the witch that was working for Hordak!” She-Ra yelled surprisingly. “The one that brainwashed Glimmer!”

“Evil-Lyn,” said He-Man in a low voice. “Does that mean Marzo and Evilseed are working for Hordak?”

“You bumbling twit,” Evil-Lyn scoffed at Count Marzo, outright ignoring the heroes only feet away. “You only had one job: release Evilseed from his prison and return immediately. Attacking He-Man and She-Ra alone is one thing, but attacking them together was unwise and reckless.”

“But – “Count Marzo started looking like a child being scolded, but Evil-Lyn cut him off.

“Save your excuses for Skeletor and the others,” she said venomously.

“So you’re back to working with Skeletor now?” asked He-Man as he and She-Ra took their battle stances. “Things not work out so well with Hordak after you lost his favorite weapon? Didn’t think Skeletor would be so foolish as to take you back after all the times you betrayed him.”

“Oh, my dear Prince Adam,” Evil-Lyn chuckled mockingly. “There are greater forces at work than you would dare to realize.”

“What is Skeletor planning, Eil-Lyn?” Randor demanded with a deep scowl.

“Heh! By the time you figure that out, it will already be too late.”

Before the heroic family could get another word it, Evil-Lyn waved her staff and covered herself, Count Marzo, and Evilseed in a dome of violet magic. He-Man leaped forward quickly and brought his power sword down on top of the dome, shattering the barrier like glass. But when the dome fell away, He-Man found the space to be empty and the trinity of villains were nowhere to be seen.

* * *

In the end, Marlena couldn’t get in contact with the Masters, which they thought was unusual considering how rigid Teela was about protocol. But it didn’t matter either way because Marzo and Evilseed had escaped, with Evil-Lyn of all people, who was apparently working for Skeletor again. Adam and Randor spent the entire flight back to Eternos in silence, lost in thought of this recent development. Marlena, on the other hand, was not going to let them spend the whole day worrying about it. Not today.

When the Wind Raider landed in the palace courtyard, there wasn’t anyone to greet them, though Adam expected as much. The royal family trotted through the castle corridors, which was also clear of any of the usual servants that would be going about their duties.

“Let’s stop by the throne room for a moment,” said Marlena. “There’s something I want to grab.”

“Gee, I wonder what it could be,” Adam said sarcastically. Marlena slapped him over the head. “Ow! Watch it!”

As they approached the doors to the throne room, Randor reached for Adora’s shoulder, stopping her, and said, “Adora, can we talk for a moment?”

“Uh…yeah, sure,” Adora agreed hesitantly, turning to her father slowly while her mother and brother walked on. “What’s up.”

“Listen…I know things have been…uneasy between us,” said Randor, rubbing his neck anxiously. “And I want you to know it has nothing to do with you. It’s just…you’ve been away for so long. You’ve…grown up without your mother and I around to help. And I’m proud of you, really, but….”

“It’s like your meeting a total stranger,” Adora offered, looking down sadly. “Yeah, I get what you mean. I never thought about my family when I was living in the Horde, so I never had to worry about it. As far as I was concerned, Catra, and then Glimmer and Bow, were my family. But now that I met you and mom and Adam….”

“You don’t know how to react,” said Randor understandingly, grasping both of his daughter’s shoulders and staring her in the eye. “I know things are complicated between us, and we can’t force ourselves to suddenly start acting like a family. There’s a lot we don’t know about each other…but I hope, in time, we could learn – together.”

“I’d like that,” said Adora with a soft smile.

Then, without warning, Adora throw herself into her father’s chest and hugged him around the waist (though her arms couldn’t reach completely; he was a _very _big man.) Randor was taken aback momentarily, but smiled and returned her embrace warmly.

“Hey, hurry up already, you goofs!” Adam called from down the hall. “Before we die of old age!”

“Adam!” Marlena scolded him; Adam laughed heartily.

Randor chuckled as they separated, his arm wrapped around his daughter’s shoulder, and joined his wife and son. The four of them walked along the hall until they were standing in front of the doors to the throne room. Adam did an overexaggerated bow for Adora and said, “After you, Princess.”

“Hey, only my fiancé gets to call me Princess,” said Adora playfully. She walked up to the doors and threw them open when –

“_SURPRISE!_”

“**_AAAAHHHH!_**” Adora shrieked fretfully, instinctively whipping out her sword and swinging it around violently, nearly taking out Mekaneck.

“Hey, watch where your pointing that thing!” he cried, jumping back.

After the initial shock wore off, Adora blinked and realized that all of her friends from the Princess Alliance and the Masters of the Universe were packed into throne room, which had been completely redecorated (including a few holes in the wall that they failed to cover up with tapestries.) Every one was holding up party poppers, which they had pulled the moment she stepped inside, and someone had, miraculously, managed to get a party hat on Teela, much to the woman’s ire. And hanging above the four thrones was a handmade banner that spelled “**HAPPY BIRTHDAY**” with drawings of Adam and Adora on one side and their alter egos on the other. Adora heard her brother laughing behind her back, but she couldn’t be bothered to respond before Glimmer and Bow jumped up and hugged her from either side.

“Happy birthday, Adora!” Glimmer cheered.

“Were you surprised? Were you?” Bow asked eagerly.

“Given that she almost took my head off, I would think so!” Mekaneck complained loudly

“Wha – what the – ?” Adora mumbled, confused. “Glimmer? Bow? What’s going on here?”

“It’s your birthday party, ya doof!” said Glimmer, snickering.

“Birthday party?” Adora repeated, blinking.

“Yeah, today’s our birthday,” Adam announced, guiding her sister further into the room by the shoulder. “Everyone figured you didn’t know that, so they set up this surprise party for us. That’s why mother and father wanted to take us to the Evergreen Forest. So everybody could set up.”

“A surprise that your brother nearly ruined multiple times,” said Randor, crossing his arms.

“Aw, it’s not like she knew what was going on,” Adam waved it off.

“So this is a party…for us?” asked Adora, a smile slowly forming on her lips.

“Yep! All for you!” Glimmer yelled excitedly, gesturing around the room. “We got decorations! We got cake! We got ice sculptures!” She looked back as said sculptures, which had had somehow been merged into one two-headed statue from the broken pieces of Bow, Orko, and Mekaneck’s epic battle. “Uh…statue. And most importantly – presents!” she finished gleefully, pulling out her gif covered in glittery wrapping paper.

“So, whaddya think?” said Bow.

“Oh, you guys!” Adora squealed, pulling her brother and best friends into a hug. “This is amazing! Thank you for doing this! I love you guys so much!”

“That’s what the Best Friend Squad is for,” said Bow, grinning.

“Speaking of,” said Adora as she looked around the room. “Where’s Catra?”

“No idea,” Glimmer answered, shrugging her shoulders nonchalantly. “She’s been off somewhere doing her own thing and not helping out all day. So if she misses the party, that’s her fault…. And it also means I win the bet,” Glimmer added in an undertone.

“Glimmer…,” Bow muttered disapproving, much to Adora’s confusion.

But at precisely that moment, as if waiting for their cue, the throne room doors were blown wide open and a majestic white horse galloped into the chamber, the guests jumping out of its path before stopping in front of Adora. The Princess of Power stared in awe with sparkles in her eyes not at the beautiful mare (although that was pretty cool), but at the rider.

Catra, her fiancé and the love of her life, was saddled on the horse’s back with a confident swagger. The Magicat had slicked back her short hair and traded her normal attire for a tasteful dress shirt and pants with a gold-and-white cape over her shoulder and – oh my god, she’s wearing shoes. Her fiancé looked like a gallant prince straight out of a storybook, grinning in a way that made Adora’s heart skip a beat.

“Hey, Adora,” said Catra suavely; Adora nearly swooned.

“C-Catra,” Adora said breathlessly. “You…you’re….”

“Cat got your tongue?” Catra joked. “Hmm, maybe not, but i definitely will soon.”

Adora flushed at the innuendo. The magicat offers her hand to Adora, which the Princess of Power takes and allows herself to be pulled straight into Catra’s lap.

“Catra, wha – what is this?” asked Adora shyly.

“You’re birthday present, dummy,” said Catra teasingly. “I was thinking you and I take a nice, romantic horseback ride across the countryside, followed by a candlelit dinner underneath the full moon on a scenic hillside I found the other day. And then, afterwards, we could give you your other present,” she patted the long box strapped to the horse’s saddle.

“What is it?” Adora asked curiously. Catra smirked and whispered something in her ear that made Adora’s entire face turn cherry-red. “Let’s go. Let’s go right now!”

“Someone’s eager,” Catra said, snickering.

“Whoa, whoa, hold up!” Adam interrupted, throwing up his hands and addressing the couple. “Are you two seriously going to be so selfish that you would duck out on a party that everyone worked so hard to set up for you?”

“…Yes?” Adora said momentarily.

“Just making sure we’re on the same page,” said Adam amusingly, shrugging. “Get out of here, you crazy kids.”

Adora smiled sheepishly; Catra threw back her head, laughing wildly. The magicat kicked her feet into the horse’s sides, turning them on the spot, and galloped out the doors, hooves clopping against the palace floors, slowly fading as they moved further away.

“Aw, that’s so romantic!” Glimmer gushed happily. Then she threw her present on the ground angrily. “Damn it!”

“I’ll go get your toothbrush,” said Bow jokingly, laughing while ducking Glimmer’s playful swing.

The rest of the party went along smoothly. Everyone filled themselves on cake and wine, and were some exchanging coin from the betting pool on Glimmer vs. Catra debate. Adam had been coerced into a performance with Man-E-Faces surrounding his heroic exploits as He-Man, laughing as the face-changer’s overexaggerated rendition of Skeletor’s overblown declaration of revenge…. The only people not partaking of the festivities was Randor, Marlena, and Man-At-Arms, all of him were talking in hushed voices in the corner of the chamber.

“So let me see if I am understanding this correctly,” said Randor, frowning. “Skeletor hired a shapeshifting mercenary to disabled the long-range scanners and distract the Masters all day. And while this was happening, Count Marzo freed Evilseed, who are both working with Evil-Lyn, who now seems to be working with Skeletor again instead of Hordak.”

“That sounds about right,” Man-At-Arms nodded.

“What do you think it means?” Marlena asked worriedly.

“I can’t say for sure,” said Man-At-Arms. “But knowing Skeletor, it can’t be anything good.”

* * *

“So…shall we get down to business?”

Skeletor turned his nonexistent eyes around the audience chamber, taking in the number of “guests” that he had invited into his domain. King Hiss and his Snake Men, Hordak and his generals, Count Marzo, Evilseed, his own Evil Warriors, and many more. When he had sent words to every vile and malevolent being on Eternia, he had not expected such a response. This was pleasing….

“Thisss had better be good, SSSkeletor,” said King Hiss, leering in Hordak’s direction. “If I am forccced to endure hisss presssence, you had best make it worth my while.”

“I am not pleased with this arrangement either, snake,” Hordak grunted, snorting occasionally.

“How dare you speak to King Hiss that way, you hideous freaks!” Kobra Khan hissed, shaking his fist at them.

“You’re one to talk, belly crawler!” snapped Manteena.

For there, arguments broke out between both groups degrading into childish insults with neither leadership stepping in to quell them.

“You’re off to a fantastic start,” Shadow Weaver said sarcastically to Skeletor.

“Not – helping,” Skeletor growled. With an irritated grumble, Skeletor raised his Havoc Staff and shot a blast in the wall between the groups. Both sides stopped immediately, returning their attention to the skull-faced sorcerer. “Now that I’ve got your attention, there’s a matter of grave importance we must discuss.”

“We all know why you summoned us, Skeletor,” Count Marzo rumbled, crossing his arms. “You want to reform your little Council of Evil again, correct?”

“Because that worked _soooo_ well last time,” said Evilseed sarcastically, cackling.

“Yes, it’s true, I have summoned you all here because I wish to form an alliance,” Skeletor admitted, surprising many in attendance. “And I won’t deny the first Council had its faults, many of which regarded trust.”

“You do realize that many of the villains here openly despise one another?” said Shokoti, unimpressed.

“Oh, I am painfully aware of the fact,” said Skeletor. “Let’s get it out of the way: we hate each other. I’m certain that there isn’t a single person in this room who wouldn’t hesitate to stab the other in the back the moment the opportunity presented itself. I know I wouldn’t. But I didn’t bring you all together because I _wanted_ to. It’s because I _needed_ to. Only by working together can we stand against the mutual threat we all face.”

“And that is?” Flogg, leader of the Evil Mutants, questioned.

Skeletor turned his attention over his shoulder to Shadow Weaver and nodded. The dark witch floated forward to stand beside him, withdrawing a crystal from her sleeve. As she held out her hand, the crystal rolled onto its tip in her open palm, projecting a beam of light upward. An image of Etheria and its many moons materialized in the center of the room.

“Two weeks ago, we all bore witness to a new world appearing in the skies above Eternia,” said Skeletor. “It is called Etheria, and it is a world filled with limitless magic. And there,” Images of the Princess Alliance formed in front of the planet with She-Ra, Catra, and Glimmer in the center, “are the Princesses of Etheria, led by their champion, She-Ra.”

“What’s with that ridiculous unitard?” said Shokoti, looking the Princess of Power up and down strangely.

“Don’t know, don’t care,” said Skeletor quickly. “The point is, these Princesses are blessed with powerful magic and every one of them is an annoying little do-gooder. Some of you may have already witnessed this firsthand.” King Hiss and Hordak grimaced at the same time. “And their leader, She-Ra, she draws from the same power as He-Man – the Power of the Elders locked away inside Castle Grayskull.

“In the past, we have all tried and failed to defeat the Masters on our own. Before now, we had the advantage of magic on our side while the Masters were entirely dependent on their precious technology. But with the arrival of these Princesses, that advantage is now lost to us. The Masters of the Universe and Princess Alliance have joined forces, and their numbers grow with each passing day. I don’t need to tell any of you that dark times are ahead for the forces of evil. The reality is that we are now hopelessly outmatched and overpowered…. At least, as long as we continue to work individually, that is.”

“And ssso you invited usss to join your Councccil,” King Hiss sneered. “Not to make alliesss, but to protect yourssself like a coward.”

“A coward who plans on surviving until the end,” Skeletor stated firmly.

“And why should we trust you?” Hordak snorted. “I haven’t forgotten when you destroyed my sanctum in an effort to keep me imprisoned.”

“If you trusted me, I would consider you a brainless fool,” Skeletor proclaimed. “As I already told you, I would gladly destroy all of you if I ever got the chance. But what you _can _trust is that we all want the same thing: He-Man, She-Ra, the Masters, the Princess – all of them gone. And when it is over, we can all go back to feuding amongst ourselves for control over both Eternia _and_ Etheria.”

The chamber fell into a stiffened silence. Several villains exchanged questionable glances; Hordak snorted briefly; King Hiss tapped his claws on his forearm contemplatively. The fact that no one was outright rejecting his idea brought a chuckle to Skeletor’s teeth.

“So…are you in?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One of the funny contrasts I noticed between the He-Man 200X show and She-Ra 2018 was that while Adora has a need to be a perfect savior, Adam has a laid-back attitude while still being responsible. This obviously comes from how they were raised. Shadow Bi – I mean, Weaver messed up Adora’s head into believing that she was worthless unless she was useful while Randor and Marlena made it known that Adam would always be loved despite his failings. Adora’s still learning how to let this side of herself go, but I think having proper parental relations is a healthy step in the right direction.
> 
> In the next chapter, tired of being the butt of the joke to friends and foes alike, Adora decides it’s high time She-Ra got a makeover. Shenanigans ensue. Meanwhile, Skeletor puts his new Council of Evil to the test, but learns that it’s not so easy to set aside old grudges.


	11. The Princess's New Clothes, Part 1

Coordinating the new Council of Evil was a lot more difficult than Skeletor had originally anticipated. For starters, her couldn’t establish himself as the dominant force of the group like last time, when he could easily stamp out potential insurrection by overpowering arrogant fools like Count Marzo. No, he had to – Skeletor near threw up in his mouth – _share _control with King Hiss and Hordak while keeping Shadow Weaver, Kobra Khan, and Evil-Lyn as seconds-in-command. It was clear that none of his (reluctant) allies were enthusiastic about the arrangement, but it was necessary to stabilize their relationship. At least until the Masters were dead and they could go back to killing each other.

Then there were the minions themselves. There was no denying the lingering animosity between the factions – especially between the Horde and the Snake Men. The bumbling idiots in Skeletor’s Evil Warriors had a way of making things worse, usually escalating simple arguments into fist fights. The only bright spot was that the factions of independents were thankfully uninterested in getting involved in work politics. The last thing Skeletor needed was Evilseed throwing a tantrum because some Horde soldier stepped on his weeds.

Today marked the fourth day after the new Council of Evil had been established. Skeletor was standing at the mouth of Snake Mountain, overlooking the large crowd of people cluttered at the base. New equipment was coming in from Hordak’s territory. The leader of the Horde wanted to add some technological upgrades to Snake Mountain, despite King Hiss’s protest. Skeletor was the deciding vote; he could still feel the serpent’s eyes burning a hole in the back of his skull.

So far, things had been operating smoothly with little incident, even if the Snake Men looked every bit as traitorous as their king. Crates were unloaded off the transports smoothly and carefully carried into the mountain, overseen by Tri-Klops.

And yet, it comes as no surprise to Skeletor that when one of the Snake Men dropped their crate on accident, spill an assortment of mechanical parts all over the ground, a fight immediately broke out.

“Be careful with that, belly crawler!” a horde soldier yelled scathingly. “Lord Hordak wants that equipment in one piece!”

“As if I care what you’re disgusting abomination of a master wants!” the Snake Man snapped venomously. “You outsiders as desecrating King Hiss’s sacred mountain with your filthy technology! We should just throw it all into the magma rivers.”

“You want to say that again, you snaggletooth freak show?” another Horde soldier threatened, pulling out their stun baton.

“He said your master is a disgusting abomination!” said another Snake Man, towering over the soldiers threateningly.

“You filthy – “

“Hey, hey, what’s going on here?!” Tri-Klops shouted, shouldering his way through the gathering crowd. “Break it up, you fools! Skeletor wants this done – “

The Snake Men cared less about the opinion of Skeletor as much as they did King Hiss. The brutish serpent swung their arm around across Tri-Klops’ face, sending him flying backward through the crowd and landing face first in the dirt. The three-eyed warrior pushed himself up, snarling, then spun around and shot a beam of energy from his lens. The Snake Man was thrown back into a group of Horde soldiers, making them drop the supplies they were carrying with outraged yells. The Snake Man shook his head of the momentarily dizziness, taking a step toward Tri-klops when he felt a painful surge across his back, throwing him forward onto his knees. The Horde soldiers had pulled out their stun batons, zapping the reptilian warrior until he was lying flat on the ground, only stopped when the other Snake Men jumped them.

The usual chaos broke out from that point. Every Horde soldier and Snake Men were caught up in the ensuing trying putting their best effort into killing one another, shortly joined by several members of Skeletor’s Evil Warriors and a few independent villains who were either annoyed or just looking for entertainment. Skeletor Sighed heavily, rubbing his smooth cranium.

“Sometime I wonder why I bother getting up in the morning,” Skeletor groaned.

Not even seconds later, Hordak and King Hiss stomped up to either side of him while Shadow Weaver hovered silently like the haunting witch that she was. They looked down at the chaos with disapproving scowls; Hordak snorted in irritation.

“This is unacceptable,” Hordak growled. “At this rate, we are more likely to destroy each other before we even have the chance to destroy the Masters.”

“Can you blame them?” King Hiss said coolly. “How many eonsss have we ssspent loathing one another? How often have we betrayed the other at the sssmallest opportunity? It wasss foolissshly optimissstic to think that centuriesss of hate out jussst dissssolve overnight.”

“Well, we don’t have time to mediate their inane squabbling,” said Skeletor. “The Masters already have She-Ra, two princesses, and that admittedly crafty feline Catra. Oh, and that other person, or whatever his name is. The one with the bow and – you know what, it doesn’t matter. The point is that the Masters are slowly gaining ranks. And after that mess with the shapeshifter and Marzo’s bungled expedition to the forest, they are sure to be on high alert. Every chance we waste is an opportunity for their numbers to grow.”

“And how do you suggest we rally them?” Hordak questioned, snorting.

“Easy,” said Skeletor nonchalantly, the sockets of his Havok Staff illuminating with destructive power. “Just a little corrective discipline and – “

“That’s not going to work,” Shadow Weaver suddenly spoke up.

The Havok Staff powered down, but Skeletor’s own empty sockets illuminated with a harsh red glow, his annoyance abundantly clear as he turned on her and said, “Excuse me?”

“Pain and fear will only do so much to keep them in line,” said Shadow Weaver calmly, “but do it too much, and it’s only one step away before they stab you in the back, as I am sure you are aware by now. Tell me, my lord, how many times have you been betrayed by your Evil Warriors?” The Master of Evil said nothing, but the glow in his eyes slowly darkened. “That’s what I thought. I tried to control Catra with pain and fear and that backfired in more ways than I can imagine. Instead of ruling Etheria through Adora like I had originally planned, I’m stuck on this miserable planet with you freaks…. No offense.”

“And what would you do differently?” asked King Hiss.

“Reflection makes one wiser,” said Shadow Weaver. She glided over to the edge with them, staring down at the escalating infighting that now included Evilseed and the Evil Mutants. “Where I failed with Adora and Catra, I had nearly succeeded with Micah and his daughter, Glimmer. Control through respect. Manipulation through appreciation. Had I not been for the good nature ingrained in their hearts, I would have most certainly won.”

“So the idea is to get them to respect us?” questioned Hordak, snorting.

“Not just you, but each other as well,” said Shadow Weaver.

“You have a plan,” said Skeletor, more of a statement than a questioned.

“I always do…,” Shadow Weaver crooned.

* * *

She-Ra’s sword clashed with Teela’s staff; the former easily pushed the latter back with a light shove. But Teela backflipped away like the skilled acrobat she is before leaping over the Princess of Power, swinging at the back of the blonde’s head. She-Ra winced from the sharp strike to her skull, but remained standing, spinning around quickly. The mighty princess hit Teela’s ankle with the flat side of her sword before she touched the ground, but the Amazonian warrior tucked and rolled back to her feet, jabbing her staff into She-Ra’s stomach. Again, She-Ra only grimaced but did not fall and immediately retaliated.

The Masters of the Universe and the present members of the Princess Alliance stood on the sidelines watching the intense battle play out. At Man-At-Arms’ insistence, he wanted to perform a mandatory training day. In the wake of Evilseed’s release on top of Skeletor’s shapeshifting saboteur, Duncan was visibly worried Skeletor would be plotting something dangerous. To prepare, he wanted to see all of the Princess’s (and Bow’s) collective abilities and understand how to mesh them together with the Master’s strengths and strategies.

Glimmer was the most powerful next to the twins and had the most useful magic, but she was wild, unpredictable, and did not follow orders well. Bow was smart, creative, and had the accuracy of a master marksmen five times his age, but he was also physically weak and prone to emotional outbursts (most commonly panic and crying). M’ythra was not participating because she was too young (and because Catra threatened to claw his eyes out). And then there was Catra. She was the most experienced, most cunning, and potentially the most dangerous of the princesses, but much like Glimmer, she didn’t take authority well and tended to do her own thing. And with Melog’s powers on top of her own skill, she could get away with it.

Honestly, Man-At-Arms thought, these kids are more troublesome than Skeletor sometimes.

And now She-Ra. As the Princess of Power continued to battle his daughter, Man-At-Arms wrote down several observations he made of She-Ra on his tablet. The Princess of Power had the strength of twenty men, but it paled in comparison to He-Man, nor did she have his reflexes; He-Man would have easily blocked several of Teela’s swings. To compensate, Adora had a number of exclusive powers including healing, weapon shifting, and magical blasts. Man-At-Arms suspected she might have more powers, but that was for another time.

As Teela effortlessly jumped over She-Ra’s sword, kicking off the princess’s chest, Man-At-Arms thought it was the perfect time to call out, “Okay, girls, that’s enough! I think I have everything I need!”

Teela and She-Ra immediately relaxed; the Princess of Power shrank back to Adora with a tired groan, mumbling, “Finally….”

“So, how does it look?” asked Bow eagerly, practically fawning over Duncan and his mustache; Glimmer rolled her eye irritably. “Come up with any butt kicking new strategies we can us on the bad guys? Because I have an idea where we can use my arrow and your cannon – “

“Thank you, Bow, but can you hold off on the details for now?” said Man-At-Arms politely. “There are a lot of fundamental details to go over. Obviously, the clear difference between the Master’s technology and the Princess’s magic could create a potential divide in the ranks as well as certain…mindsets,” he added, glancing at Catra and Glimmer; the pair grinned and fist bumped.

“Well, if anyone can get everyone in line, it’s you Man-At-Arms,” said Adam confidently. “And let’s face it, Skeletor’s goons aren’t exactly the brightest torches in the batch.”

“Be that as it may, Skeletor, in addition to Hiss and Hordak, pose a huge threat to Eternia,” said Man-At-Arms. “I want to be sure we’re prepared in case of an attack.”

“We won’t have to worry too much, father,” said Teela in a teasing tone. “They’ll probably be too busy gouging their eyes out when they get a look at She-Ra’s unitard.”

Some like Bow, M’ythra, Ram Man, Mekaneck, Stratos, Man-E-Faces had the decency to cover up their snickering, but others like Adam, Catra, Glimmer, Buzz-Off, and Fisto were guffawing out loud. Roboto and Sy-Klone just looked at each other, shrugging their shoulders.

Adora puffed her reddened cheeks in frustration. She had been with the Masters for over a month now and they had fought alongside each other through numerous battles, but they never stopped poking fun at She-Ra’s appearance. Back on Etheria, people practically threw themselves at She-Ra and thought she was a goddess in human form…. Then again, they were in the middle of the war and probably weren’t too picky about what their savior looked like. Adora herself couldn’t deny that He-Man looked more…heroic when compared to her – BUT THAT’S NOT THE POINT!

“Are you done yet?” said Adora, crossing her arms, pouting.

“Oh, c’mon, sis, don’t be a poor sport,” said Adam, throwing his arm over her shoulder casually. “It’s just a little teasing. You gotta admit, it’s a little funny. I mean, what’s up with those shorts? They looked _super _uncomfortable.”

“They are…,” Adora admitted, muttering. “They always ride up in the – you know.”

“And that frilly skirt thing you got going on?” said Buzz-Off, chortling. “What is that even for? It’s not flattering, I’ll tell you that.”

“And that tiara?!” Fisto boomed, throwing his head with a belly laugh. “Looks like you put a couple o’ tin ears on a wire.”

“And that cape is a total health hazard,” Catra added, snickering. “She-Ra’s more likely to get herself killed before the bad guys have a chance.”

“That’s not true!” said Adora, stomping her foot heatedly. “The cape is perfectly fine – “

“You nearly choked yourself to death when it got caught in the door,” Catra interrupted; Adora shut her mouth so quick, they heard her teeth click. “Then there was the time when you were running through the whispering woods and got caught in a tree branch. Then there was the time you got caught in the skiff rudder. And the time it got set on fire. And then the time when – “

“Okay, I get it!” Adora snapped, running a hand down her face. “Look, it’s not like I _chose_ how She-Ra looks. That’s just how she is. If I had it my way, I would change it to something cooler and more sensible.”

“Then why don’t you?” asked Adam curiously. “If you don’t like it, just change She-Ra into something you prefer.”

“…You can do that?” asked Adora, turning on her brother slowly.

“Sure, He-Man changes all the time,” said Adam nonchalantly. “I remember this one time when – “

“How do I do it!” Adora shouted, grabbing her brother’s shoulder and shaking him violently. “How do I change She-Ra into something cooler!”

“May – be – you – can – ask – the – sor – cer – ess!” Adam cried. He finally managed to grasp Adora’s hands and pry himself free. “She’s usually the one that changes He-Man’s look when it’s needed, like what she did for the Snake Men Armor and the Hordak Armor. She’ll probably know how to change She-Ra – “

“Why are you only telling me this now?!” Adora screamed. “C’mon, we have to see the Sorceress immediately!”

“Hey, whoa, slow down!” Adam yelped as his twin sister started pulling him by the arm.

“…This is going to be a complete disaster, isn’t it?” asked Glimmer coolly.

“Obviously,” Catra answered.

“Wanna go watch?” Glimmer offered.

“Obviously,” Catra repeated.

* * *

“So let me see if I am to understand this correctly,” the Sorceress spoke in her natural monotone, seated on her throne, staring down the starry-eyed Princess of Power and her apologetic brother. “You wish for me to use the infinite knowledge and power of the Elders…to give you a – what did you call it – ‘cooler outfit’?”

“Yes, please!” Adora barked like an overexcited puppy.

“Yeah, sorry,” said Adam, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. “She’s kinda adamant about this.”

“I am not perturbed by your appearance nor your unusual request,” said the Sorceress before her eyes drifted sideways. “But did you have to bring them in here as well?”

She was referring to Catra, Glimmer, and Bow standing off on the side of the chamber. Glimmer and Bow waved enthusiastically while Catra snickered behind her claws. Adam chuckled nervously.

“They uh…kinda followed us here,” he explained pathetically.

“Castle Grayskull is a sacred fortress created by your ancestors to guard the Power of the Elders and the secrets of the universe,” said the Sorceress seriously. “It is not a clubhouse for you and your friends to come and go as you please.”

Glimmer then ‘poofed’ up to the side of the Sorceress;s throne, the winged mystic surprisingly unfazed by her appearance, and said, “Aw, don’t be such a stick in the mud. We’re the Best Friend Squad! Wherever Adora goes, we go! And just between you and me,” she whispered in a conspiratorial tone, “I _love _your wings. The plumage is so beautiful. I’ve been trying forever to grow my own wings like my mom, but I think since I’m only half….” Her tangent slowly died off as the Sorceress stared down at her with an unimpressed look. “I’ll uh…I’ll just go stand over there.”

Glimmer ‘poofed’ back over to her friends. The Sorceress rubbed the bridge of her nose before addressing Adora again.

“Adora,” she said calmly, “when you took up the Sword of Protection, it gave you a form that was best suited to serve your purpose as protector of Etheria, even if it is not aesthetically pleasing.”

“Well, Etheria is safe now…I think,” Adora argued, though with a hint of uncertainty at the end. “But Eternia is my home now, and the villains are _way _worse than those on Etheria. Skeletor, Hiss, another Hordak. They are the most powerful enemies I’ve ever come across, even worse than Horde Prime, which I didn’t think was possible. She-Ra has tried and failed to fight them on even ground. She-Ra can barely even fight off the henchmen. Please, wise Sorceress, let me use the Power of the Elders to make She-Ra stronger so that I can protect my home from the forces of evil.”

“And getting a new outfit out of the deal wouldn’t hurt, huh?” said Adam teasingly.

“It was implied,” Adora muttered out of the corner of her mouth.

The Sorceress touched her chin and closed her eyes, humming thoughtfully. After a few seconds of silence, the Sorceress sat up and said, “Though your true reasons for this change are selfish and unnecessary, I do see your point. The Sword of Protection is man-made; a pale imitation of the original Sword of Power. It will not be enough to defeat the forces of evil.”

“So you’ll give She-Ra a power-up?” asked Adam.

“I will do better,” said the Sorceress. “I shall forge a new Sword of Protection – this one created from the same source as He-Man’s weapon: The Power of the Elders. When it is finished, She-Ra will be given new strength and abilities far beyond those of the previous blade.”

“And how long will that take?” Catra asked.

“Forging a new sword is simple – shouldn’t take more than a few minutes with magic,” answered the Sorceress. “Imbuing it with the Power of the Elders, on the other hand, is impossible to say. He-Man’s Sword of Power was infused directly with King Grayskull’s lifeforce. It was a unique ability. It will require research and time.”

“So I’m stuck with the uncomfortable unitard until them?” Adora grumbled, visibly slouching; Adam patted her shoulder understandingly.

With an exasperated sigh, the Sorceress rose from her throne and glided down to the bottom to stand in front of the twins.

“Allow me to see the Sword of Protection for a moment,” she requested. Adora reached for her bracelet and transformed it into She-Ra’s sword. The Sorceress reached out and tapped the large jewel embedded in the hilt; the gemstone glowed briefly. “There. With this spell, you will be allowed to change She-Ra’s appearance to whatever you wish. Be warned: once you receive the new Sword of Protection, it will be permanent. I expect you to make a decision by then.”

“Yes!” Adora cheered. “Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!”

“Children these days…,” the Sorceress muttered under her breath before flying out of the chamber.

Glimmer popped up at Adora’s shoulder immediately, shrieking gleefully, followed by Bow running up to them with a big bear hug.

“This is going to be so _awesome_!” Glimmer screeched. “What should we make She-Ra look like? A rhinestone cape? Spiky shoulder pads?” She let out a dramatic gasp. “She-Ra would look totally badass in a leather jacket. Adora, we need She-Ra in a leather jacket, now!”

“Uh…I’ll give it some thought,” said Adora uncomfortably.

“You gotta let me help!” Bow squeed. “I have some amazing ideas I think I know you’ll like!”

“Is it really that big of a deal?” Adam asked Catra, who walked up beside him.

“I went through like a dozen outfits during the war,” said Catra with a hint of pride, “and Adora always wore that same crusty jacket. You would not _believe _what I had to go through to get rid of that nasty old thing. The fact that’s she doing this willingly is a huge step.”

“Etherians get weirder every day,” Adam mumbled.

“Trust me, this isn’t even the worst,” Catra cackled, her ears twitching.

Suddenly, Adam’s communicator crackled to life as Teela’s voice came through:

“**_Adam! Adam, are you there? Pick up!_**”

“I’m here, Teela,” Adam answered quickly. “What’s up?”

“**_King Ceratus said his men have spotted King Hiss moving through the Caligar territory of Subternia,_**” Teela informed. “**_He believes they’re heading back to the Temple of Serpos._**”

“The temple?” said Adam questionably. “But that place is in ruins after He-Man went to town on Hiss’s pets. Why would he be going back.”

“**_It’s Hiss – you know he always has some secrets stashed away,_**” said Teela. “**_But that’s not the strangest part. According to the caligars, King Hiss – and I can’t believe I’m saying this – was seen leading a squadron of Horde soldiers through the tunnels._**”

“Horde Soldiers?” said Adora as she, Bow, and Glimmer joined the conversation. “I thought you said the Horde and the Snake Men hated each other.”

“**_They do,_**” Teela replied. “**_I thought it was a mistake, but King Ceratus confirmed that Manteena, Leech, and Evil-Lyn were all with King Hiss. I don’t know if they betrayed Hordak or if Hiss killed him, but something’s going on down in those tunnels. We’re going to need He-Man and She-Ra._**”

“We’ll be down there as soon as we can!” said Adam, stowing the communicator. “C’mon, we need to get down to Subternia quick. If for some reason the Horde is working with King Hiss, it’s going to be bad.”

“Right, let’s go,” Adora nodded.

“_WAIT!_” Glimmer shouted, stopping everyone in their tracks. “We still haven’t picked out She-Ra’s knew outfit.”

“Glimmer, don’t you think that can wait until after – “ Adora started, but was promptly cut off by the queen.

“Adora, this is probably the single most important decision you will ever make in your life – “

“Yeah, hello, fiancé over here,” Catra interjected.

“Once the Sorceress gives you your new sword, there is no going back!” Glimmer continued uninterrupted. Adora squeaked as her best friend roughly grabbed her arms, pulling her down until they were nose-to-nose. “The choice you make will affect you for the rest of your life! We have to make sure that everything is ab – so – lutely –**_ PERFECT_**!”

“…Glimmer, you’re scaring me,” Adora said in a small voice.

“Okay, okay, let’s all calm down for a minute,” said Bow, prying the girls apart slowly. “How ‘bout this: Adam and Catra can go ahead and meet the others in Subternia. Then when we’re done here, Glimmer can teleport us to meet you guys. Fair?”

Adam exchanged uncertain looks with Catra, then said, “All right, I’ll turn on the tracker on my communicator so you’ll know where to find us. Just don’t take too long.”

“Are you sure you’re all right with this?” Adora asked Catra, worried.

“You mean getting to spend some alone time with your super-hot, super muscular brother,” Catra replied with a mischievous grin, sauntering toward Adam, swinging her hips with her tail swishing behind her. “I think I’ll be just fine.”

“Wait – hold on – I change my mind – “

“Too late!” Catra cackled, turning to Adam. “Hit it, muscles.”

Adam rolled his eyes, but nonetheless raised his sword to the air and yelled, “**_By the power of Grayskull!_**”

* * *

King Hiss sniffed indignantly as he looked around the former site of the sacred Temple of Serpos. Last time he was here, he had retrieved the amulet that would resurrect their Snake God (a plan which ultimately failed and left him temporarily beheaded), and left He-Man and his allies fighting the guardians of the temple. But seeing as how the obnoxious hero was still alive, Hiss wasn’t too surprised to find the sacred grounds in shambles. The walls were caved in, their sacred monuments crushed, and the hundreds of bones that were once the temple guardians littered the floor; a testament to their failure.

His attention refocused to the dozens of armored foot soldiers scrambling around the chamber, pushing fallen debris out of the way and several inspecting every small stone they found. Though he may not like the Horde, he couldn’t deny that Hordak with efficiency. His Snake Man followed him loyally, but there was too much infighting between his generals, especially since he chose Kobra Khan as his right hand (and decision King Hiss still stands by for his cunning and devotion.) The Horde, on the other hand, worked more efficiently. All he did was give them a simple order and they created an effective search system without instruction; every soldier was doing something, and they were doing it well. Even the generals were contributing: Manteena’s vision melted the unnecessary stone, Leech’s hulking strength moved the larger rocks, and Evil-Lyn’s magic could do the work of ten soldiers with just a swish of her staff.

But it had been close to two hours since the Horde soldiers started excavating the temple and not a single soldier had found what he was looking for. It was only to be expected that someone would eventually get tired of such seemingly fruitless searching, and, just as King Hiss predicted, that someone would end up being Evil-Lyn.

The wicked sorceress tossed another pile of stone in the faraway corner, wiping the seat from her brow due to the magma flow around them, and leered up at King Hiss from his perch on high.

“This is ridiculous,” Evil-Lyn scoffed aloud, wanting King Hiss to hear. “Why are _we _being forced to dig around in _their _snake nest? We are the most capable army in all of Eternia and were playing around with rocks underground. And for that matter, why are we even taking orders from the likes of _him_ in the first place?” she added, jabbing her staff at the snake king.

King Hiss frowned, but was unsurprised. The Horde soldiers noticeably slowed down in their production line, mulling over Evil-Lyn’s words. Manteena and Leech stopped all together, sharing mutual scowls as they marched over to stand beside the witch. King Hiss resisted the urge to bare his fangs. He did to tolerate insubordination, especially from Horde soldiers. But the serpent king breathed deeply through his nose and calmed. He knew this would happen, now he just had to settle it.

King Hiss dropped down to ground level and landed upright with a heavy _thud_. Manteena and Leech shrank, trying to hide behind Evil-Lyn, who bravely scowled at him. He approached the woman, towering over her by a full head and shoulders. To many, this would seem like an act of intimidation.

“If there is a problem, you may speak to be directly, Evil-Lyn,” said King Hiss.

“Oh, there’s a problem, all right,” said Evil-Lyn. “The problem is that we are down here, looting through rocks in Subternia, under _your_ orders. We are the Horde. Our master is Hordak, not you. If you want someone rummaging through this mess, ask your scaly servants.”

“I could have asked my followers, certainly, and they would do so without complaint,” said King Hiss. “But this is for the good of the Council. Skeletor, Hordak, and I all agreed that if we are going to be working together, we must learn to get along, even if we don’t want to. It’s the only way we’ll be able to stand up against the Masters and the Princesses. So, while we are ‘rummaging around as you say’, Skeletor and Hordak are leading their own missions.”

“I should’ve gone with Skeletor,” Evil-Lyn mumbled.

“You don’t trust me,” King Hiss stated.

“You said you would honor me for freeing you and then you tried to eat me,” said Evil-Lyn, glowering. “Skeletor may have had many faults, but at least he never tried to kill his minions.”

“Only beat and maim them,” King Hiss retorted.

“But they were still alive to fight another day,” said Evil-Lyn. King Hiss went quiet, staring her down, until the sorceress let out an exasperated sigh. “Fine, we’ll play nice for now. But in the spirit of this newfound ‘comradery’, will you at least tell us what we’re looking for?”

“It is no secret; all you had to do was ask,” said King Hiss; Evil-Lyn narrowed her eyes. “The item we seek is called the Keystone of Serpos. An ancient tool that allows those who wield it to unlock the mystical of Serpos, which now lies in the heart of Snake Mountain. Many eons ago, I once used this very power to strengthen my army, allowing the Snake Men to conquer Eternia and annihilate anyone that dared to oppose us.”

“Until Hordak defeated you and Zodak imprisoned you,” said Evil-Lyn smugly.

“…Yes…before that happened…,” King Hiss answered slowly. “Regardless, once we have the keystone, we will unlock the power of Serpos and strengthen the Council of Evil a hundred-fold. Not even combined might of He-Man and She-Ra will be able to contest against an army of warriors imbued with the power of a god. So that’s why, Evil-Lyn,” he said in a low voice, leaning close, “even if it takes all day – even if it takes weeks or months – it is imperative that we – “

“Found it!” A random soldier shouted gleefully.

“Wow, that unrealistically fast,” Manteena commented.

King Hiss shoved the wide-eyed monster out of the way and marched across the chamber with purpose, the Horde generals following in his wake. The stalwart king of serpents loomed over the soldier that had called his attention, his burning-red eyes leering at his reflection in the soldier’s visor. The soldier himself was trembling uncontrollably, his knees looking ready to give out as he held out his hands. Nestled inside the soldier’s palms was a small, oval-shaped stone with an image of a snake eating its own tail scratched into the surface, surrounding by a bunch of indecipherable symbols. King Hiss plucked the stone from the soldier’s hands, turning it over twice between his fingers, then a satisfied smile crossed his lipless mouth. Then, to everyone’s surprise, King Hiss gently settled his palm on the soldier’s shoulder; the soldier stiffened in place.

“You have done well in finding this, my friend,” King Hiss praised. “Tell me, what is your name?”

“Er – it’s um…it’s Theydon…sir?” he answered uncertainly.

“Well, Theydon, I will make sure that Hordak knows of your contribution to our cause” said King Hiss pleasantly. “You will be rewarded.” The soldier noticeably relaxed under his touch, as did the others watching him. Good. He faced the Horde army with keystone held high. “Today, marks the beginning of a new age, my friends! With the power of Serpos flowing through your veins, you will march into Eternos and defeat those accursed Masters of the Universe. Together, Eternia will belong to us – the Council of Evil!”

The Horde soldiers pumped their fists and cheered; even Manteena and Leech joined in. Only Evil-Lyn seemed unmoved, her arms crossed and her gaze narrowed with suspicion. King Hiss knew that wouldn’t be enough to sway her, but it was a start. With the stone in hand –

** _THWIP!_ **

King Hiss snarled as a sharp pain flared across his wrist, compelling him to drop the stone. Before the rock even hit the ground, a leather whip flew out of nowhere and snatched it up, carrying to the entrance of the temple. The keystone seemingly floated in midair until whatever illusion was cast fell away and Catra appeared holding the stone, standing between Melog and He-Man with the Masters beside them.

“_Hey, Hiss_,” said Catra, waving the keystone tauntingly.

“Hope we haven’t missed out on all the fun,” said He-Man, grinning.

“He-Man…,” King Hiss…well, hissed. “You’re here sooner than I expected.”

“We’re tenacious like that,” said Teela.

“We’re taking you in, Hiss,” said Man-At-Arms. “You can tell us all about this new Council of Evil in your new cell.”

“Foolish Masters, have you learned nothing,” said King Hiss mockingly. “I may not have the aid of the Snake Men, but I have something just as good. Horde soldiers, attack!”

The king of snakes was pleased how the nameless grunts charged ahead without question; whether it was because they actually obeyed Hiss or they just hated the Masters was up for debate.

The Masters of the Universe scattered. Ram Man drops down to ground level, his heavy footfalls making the ground quiver, and barreled his way through the Horde squadron like a bowling ball. Stratos and Buzz-Off glided near the ceiling, weaving between the volley of laser fire, picking soldiers off the ground one-by-one and dropping them from a considerable height. And Sy-Klone sent everyone else flying as he generated twin tornados from his spinning arms.

Fisto rushed at Leech, swinging his gigantic metal knuckles at the reptilian general. But Leech captured the Heroic Warrior’s fist in his suction cupped hand, constricting his fingers around Fisto’s hand, vacuum sealing it in place. The Horde general’s hand sucked Fisto’s hand aggressively, draining the Heroic Warrior like his namesake…only to realize that he couldn’t feel anything coming through. Leech looked momentarily confused until he caught Fisto looking up at him with a devious smirk.

“Aw, a metal hand doesn’t wet your appetite,” Fisto taunted, pulling back his other hand. “How’s ‘bout you chew on _this!_”

Fisto pounded his knuckles between Leech’s eyes, catapulting him away and landing on his back, lying there in a daze. Manteena nearly tripped over him as the four-legged mutant staggered backward, fidgeting fretfully as he shot several successive beams of yellow, red, green, and purple from his eyes and took another few steps back. He was trying to put distance between himself and Roboto, who’s durable armored chassis deflected Manteena’s optic rays and marched up to the mutant as if he were taking a stroll through the garden. But eventually, Manteena found himself backing into a wall with no place left to run. The heroic machine towered over the bug-eyed general and, before Manteena could jump at him, grabbed him by the throat before lifting him off the ground.

“**I would highly recommend you close your eyes for this next part**,” Roboto advised before socking him in the face.

Teela flipped over a purple blast of energy shot her way by Evil-Lyn, snapping her staff around to slap another volley to the wall. The wicked witch of the Horde raised her scepter to the ceiling, her eyes glowing violet with power – the same glow that coated the bones of the temple guardians. The serpent skeletons raised themselves off the ground, turning their pointed heads at Teela with their ten-foot-long fangs gleaming. They lunged as the Amazonian Master, who deftly flipped backward to dodge the first serpent, jumped up to land on the head of the second, and then swung her staff to smash the fangs of the third that loomed overhead. Teela made a dash down the snake’s spinal cord; the boney serpents turned their heads and gave chase.

Teela was making a run for Evil-Lyn. It was her power that was controlling them, so bringing her down would make them stop. But Evil-Lyn saw through Teela’s ploy and held up her scepter, readying another magic blast. But before she could get the incantation past her lips, Evil-Lyn was nearly pulled off her feet when her scepter was sharply ripped from her hands. The evil sorceress stared, baffled, at her weapon floating seemingly unsupported in the air. Then she heard a squeaky laugh and, moments later, Catra came into view with a devious grin with Melog beside her with a similar smirk on her face.

“Lose something?” she teased, waving the staff _and _the keystone.

Evil-Lyn reached toward the Magicat when Teela suddenly swooped down and smacked the wicked witch across the face with her staff, knocking her flat. The violet glow around the skeletal snakes withered and the bones clattered uselessly on the ground. Catra cackled again, twirling Evil-Lyn’s scepter like a baton just to show off.

“What would you do without me?” Catra said to Teela.

“Live a longer, less stressful life,” Teela grimaced.

Sparks flew as He-Man’s sword clashed with King Hiss’s staff, locking into place as they tried to push the other. The king of serpents did well to last as long as he did, but He-Man’s physical prowess steadily began to overwhelm him. The Man of Power took a step forward and Hiss’s clawed feet scrapped the ground as he was forced back. He took another step and Hiss lost another foot. The king of serpents spat harshly, then morphed into his five-headed form before He-man’s eyes (two of the heads remained holding the staff.) King Hiss reared his heads and lunged at He-Man’s neck. The Heroic Warrior quickly pulled back, allowing King Hiss to fall forward a few inches, and bounded away to a safer distance. All ten of King Hiss’s glowing red eyes narrowed on He-Man, the mighty warrior taking a defensive attack while leering back.

“Surrender, Hiss,” He-Man demanded. “Your Snake Men aren’t here to be your shield. And I seriously doubt the Horde is prepare to throw their lives away for you.”

“You cannot ssstop what isss coming, He-Man,” King Hiss proclaimed. “The Councccil of Evil hasss gathered the worssst monssstersss and villainsss from every corner of Eternia. You may have outmatched usss before with your numbersss and sheer power, you may have taken advantage of the Princccessess on your ssside. But now _we_ hold the advantage! _We_ hold the power and the numbersss! And we will not ssstop until you, and all of Eternia, lay broken at our feet!”

“Then how about we even the odds a little!”

He-Man and King Hiss turned their attention to the tunnel entrance above. Adora stood dramatically at the front, the Sword of Protection in hand, flanked by Bow and Glimmer with arrows and sparkles at the ready.

“You sure took your sweet time,” said He-Man teasingly.

“It’s called being fashionably late,” Adora retorted. “Now step back and take a good look at the new, improved She-Ra. **_For the honor of Grayskull!_**”

The temple cavern filled with the typical explosion of light that came with her transformation, bringing everyone to stop what they were doing and stare. When the daze passed, the new She-Ra stood proud and noble. Gone was the one-piece unitard (“Thank Etheria,” Catra muttered) and replaced with an armored dress not dissimilar to Teela’s, favoring white with golden accents. Her boots and bracelets were intricately detailed, her long red cape billowed in the nonexistent wind, and her headpiece looked like an actual tiara instead of a piece or wire.

Teela let out a low whistle and said, “Not bad.”

“Prepare yourself, Hiss,” She-Ra warned, “for your face the new She-Ra!”

The Princess of Power leaped dramatically over the edged, flying down to ground level…. And when she landed on her feet, something strange happened with everyone in the temple. Everyone from the heroes to the villains were covering their eyes with their hands and looking pointedly away from her. Only Catra and Teela would look her in the eye; the latter smacked herself in the forehead while the scratched the back of her head uncomfortably.

“What? What happened?” asked She-Ra cluelessly. “Why’s everybody acting funny?”

“Uh…Adora?” Catra said awkwardly as she walked over. “When you made that outfit, did you remember to make um…underthings….”

She-Ra stared at her fiancé with a blank expression…then her face slowly turned a mortifying shade of red. It was the first time Catra had ever her She-Ra squeak like a frightened mouse as she quickly covered her skirt with her hands, dropping the Sword of Protection on the ground. She turned back to Adora, who was wearing pants, but was still trying to cover herself up.

“_DON’T LOOK AT ME!_” Adora cried.

“Of all the ridiculous – GAH!” King Hiss yelped.

While Hiss was distracted by She-Ra’s spectacle, He-Man launched forward and grabbed the king snake by the throat, lifting him off the ground with one hand. The Man of Power swung King Hiss once – twice – three times over his head and then launched him to the other side of the cavern, slamming him into the wall. The king of serpents fell to the ground on his knees, wheezing. In a surprising turn, Manteena was the first by his side while Leech helped the malicious snake off the ground. Evil-Lyn and the rest of the Horde forces slowly backed up to surround them, keeping a wary eye on the collective group of heroes.

King Hiss could certainly keep fighting, but by the look of things, he already got what he came for.

“Savor this momentarily victory, He-Man,” King Hiss spat. “For it will soon be your last.”

The five snake heads made a chorus of hacking noises before they spat up a wave of black spectral snakes. The ghostly serpents formed a barrier between the villains and the Masters, hissing and snapping if the heroes got too close. Then, after a few tense minutes, the ethereal serpents faded into smoke. King Hiss and the Horde Squadron were nowhere to be seen.

A moment of awkward silence filled the temple…then He-Man turned to his sister and asked, “Are you gonna keep that look?”

“**_NO!_**”

* * *

Returning to Man-At-Arms’ workshop in Eternos, Duncan was at his wits end. Since coming back to from Subternia, he had been trying everything he could think of to figure out how the Keystone of Serpos worked and if there was a safe way to ensure that King Hiss couldn’t use it. But no matter what method he tried, he couldn’t detect any power like the king of serpents described coming from the rock. He used every form of scanning technology, every type of radiation under the suns, but they all came up blank. Even Glimmer, a talented sorceress in her own right, couldn’t sense any power. As far as she could tell, it was just an ordinary rock.

Man-At-Arms picked the rock off his workbench, turning it in his hand, his mustache drooping with a clear frown as his thumb brushed against the crude scratches in the rock’s surface.

“I just don’t understand it,” said Man-At-Arms, setting the stone down again. “Why would King Hiss go through all the trouble for a rock with no special qualities?”

“I’m more worried about the new Council of Evil he’s working with,” said Adam, his arms crossed as he leaned against the wall.

“Yeah, what’s a ‘Council of Evil’ anyway?” asked Catra, who was sitting on the floor, scratching Melog’s ear absentmindedly. “I mean, the name is badass, but they don’t sound like the kinda guys you’d hang out at a bar with.”

“Years ago, Skeletor teamed up with a group of independent villains and called themselves the Council of Evil,” Man-At-Arms answered gravely. “They were the most dangerous threat we ever faced. They nearly wiped out the Masters and came close to stealing the power of Castle Grayskull. And from the sound of it, Skeletor’s decided to get the old gang back together.”

“And he’s upped the membership,” said Adam. “King Hiss hates Skeletor as much as he hates Hordak, but if he’s joined the Council of Evil _and _is working with the Horde – “

“Then that means our worst enemies have banded together,” Man-At-Arms finished.

“But why now?” Adam asked.

“Isn’t it obvious?” said Catra, earning their stares. “It’s because of us. I mean, She-Ra and the Princesses. You guys were barely kicking their butts before, and that’s because they were fighting each other just as much. But when Etheria popped up in the sky and She-Ra started teaming up with He-Man, it was a game changer.”

“Catra’s right,” said Man-At-Arms. “The villains must have realized that they were being overpowered and decided to work together against a common foe.”

“The enemy of my enemy is my reluctant acquaintance, right?” said Adam jokingly. “Still, I don’t even wanna imagine the kind of things Skeletor could get up to with Hiss and Hordak. Whaddya think about this, Adora?”

Unfortunately, his twin sister had not heard a word any of them, slumped over the workshop desk with her fingers running through her hair, Bow and Glimmer chattering in both her ears like a pair of chipmunks on a sugar high. Adora was thoroughly ashamed by what happened down in Subternia and had not said a word to anyone when they came back. The Best Friend Squad had been pouring over new ideas for She-Ra’s next look, coming to a unanimous decision that skirts were no longer an option. There was almost a hint of manic energy share between them to the point of obsession. Catra honestly couldn’t understand why they were making a big deal about it; it was just clothes! Then again, she looked amazing in everything….

“How did you never beat them?” Adam asked Catra while watching Adora shove Bow into a waste basket for whatever reason.

“I ask myself that same question every day,” Catra replied monotonously.

Teela then just into the workshop, leaning against the threshold, panting, and said, “Hordak…desert…goons….”

“Whoa, easy, slow down, Teela,” said Adam, concerned.

“There’s no time to slow down!” Teela snapped, catching her second wind. “The long-range scanners picked up Hordak moving through the Sands of Time with Skeletor’s henchmen. Scouts believe they’re headed for Shokoti’s old temple.”

“The House of Darkness,” Man-At-Arms hummed. “This sounds like the real thing. Who knows what kind of things a wicked sorceress like Shokoti has buried there?”

“Then what’re we doing wasting time here?” said Adam urgently. “C’mon, let’s roll!”

Man-At-Arms and Teela raced out of the workshop first, but Adam and Catra paused at the door, looking back at the Best Friend Squad who were still hunched over the growing stack of designs.

“Uh…you guys coming or…?” Adam said slowly.

“Uh-huh…”

“Sure, sure…”

“In a minute…”

“Never thought I’d see the day when I missed the ugly unitard,” Catra mumbled before slipping out. Adam shook his head disappointedly at his twin’s back before following.

* * *

The House of Darkness, the black pyramid that once imprisoned the dark sorceress Shokoti beneath the Sands of Time for centuries. Even after the wicked Gar woman escaped from the tomb two years ago, it cast a dark shadow even in the Dark Hemisphere. Of course, Hordak had seen much worse – he had been imprisoned in another dimension of absolute nothingness for eons, after all.

The master of the Horde stomped through the narrow halls of the dark pyramid, grunting and snorting every few steps like he was sniffing something out. Behind him were a few of Skeletor’s Evil Warriors which consisted of Tri-Klops, Trap Jaw, Beast Man, Whiplash, and Mer-Man. All of them looked remarkably pathetic in Hordak’s eyes – he often wondered while a powerful warlock like Skeletor worked with such lowly trash. Still, there was something to be said about the effectiveness of unique individuals working as a whole. Hordak saw it all the same with the Masters, especially compared to his own soldiers, who were trained to be exactly the same in every regard with the exceptional few who were raised up to prominence like Leech and Manteena. Hordak knew he shouldn’t write the Evil Warriors off so quickly…but they were making it very difficult.

Beastman had been whimpering like a wounded dog since they stepped inside the House of Darkness, hiding behind Trap Jaw, who was shaking so much his cybernetic parts were rattling incessantly. Mer-Man kept making that annoying bubbling noise, constantly looking left as right, unknowingly walking into Whiplash, who yelped and spun around, swinging his barbed tail that it nearly took everyone’s heads. The only one that wasn’t acting like a frightened child was Tri-Klops, to Hordak’s immense relief. The one-eyed warriors scowled back at his companions.

“Will you idiots knock it off!” he snapped. “At this rate, you’ll end up bringing the whole place down on top of our heads.”

“But it’s so dark,” Beastman whined.

“And spooky,” Whiplash added with a tremble.

“We live in the Dark Hemisphere – it’s always dark and spooky!” Tri-Klops yelled. “So stop acting like a bunch of children and keep moving!”

“It’s good to know that there’s someone who can keep their wits about them,” said Hordak. “I was almost afraid that I would be getting the short end of the stick in this little…exchange. If you can keep the others in line, we might get through this quickly.”

“Don’t think this means we’re going to be buddies anytime soon,” Tri-Klops returned warily. “We’re only doing this because Skeletor told us. I don’t trust you, even if we are on the same team.”

“Hmm, that’s a good mindset to have,” said Hordak, snorting. “You are very wise.”

“It – it is?” said Tri-Klops, taken aback by the compliment.

“No one should be under any delusion that anyone on the Council can be trusted,” said Hordak. “Skeletor said it himself: We hated each other. I have no doubt that everyone is plotting to kill one another at the first opportunity. You’re right, we’re not buddies, nor should we pretend otherwise. But for now, it would be in our best interest if we learned to cooperate – “

While Tri-Klops was giving the Horde master his undivided attention, he suddenly stumbled when his foot sank into the floor. He had stepped on a hidden pressure plate. A square column of stone dropped from the ceiling above Tri-klops. The Evil Warrior crossed his arms over his head, waiting for the moment when he would be crushed into a fine powder…but it didn’t come.

Tri-Klops raised his head slowly. Hordak towered him like an angel of death, his burning-red eyes glowing in the dark corridor. He was holding the stone column only a foot above Tri-Klops’ head with only one hand, betraying no signs of strain. With his other hand, Hordak grabbed Tri-Klops by the front of his armor and pulled him out from under the column to safety. Hordak removed his hand from the column and let it slam to the floor with a _thud!_ Tri-Klops breathed deeply, holding his pacing heart, as Hordak walked by nonchalantly with a humorous chuckle.

“ – and keep an eye out for traps,” Hordak finished.

Tri-Klops stared at his back with an unreadable expression before following; the other Evil Warriors scuttled close behind, now even more twitchy than before.

They continued down the corridors and turned twice in the path. The whole time, none of the Evil Warrior’s knew _why _they were here in the first place, only blindly following Hordak. But soon enough, the Horde leader stopped in the middle of the hall; the Evil Warriors stopped immediately, bumping into one another. Hordak turned to face the left wall, scowling, and then, quite suddenly, put his fist through the stone; Mer-Man squeaked like a frightened mouse and jumped into Beastman’s arms. And with grunt of effort, Hordak pulled his hand down, ripping the wall away like it was paper, and stepped through the hole. Tri-Klops and the other warriors exchanged strange looks before pursuing.

They entered a large, spacious chamber where the only source of illumination came from the beam of moonlight from the hole in the ceiling. The beam was shining down on a stone podium in the middle of the room. On the podium was a thick, heavy-looking tome. Hordak marched up to the book with big, heavy footfalls while the Evil Warrior’s tiptoed behind him. The tome had a dirty leather covered, the silver lettering near the top scratched out, making the title indecipherable, and there was some type of image in the center, but they couldn’t make it out because there were four gashing claw marks running through it.

“Ah, here it is,” Hordak said with relish, picking up the book gently. “We found it.”

“Uh…found what?” Trap Jaw asked dimly.

“This, my associates, is the Book of the Dead,” Hordak answered.

“D-D-Dead?” Whiplash stammered fretfully.

“Many centuries ago, it is said that the Crimson Countess rose to power shortly after my…imprisonment,” Hordak explained. “It is said that she once raised an army of the dead by using the magic inscribed in the pages of this book. The Crimson Countess laid siege to Eternia, suffocating all life in a tidal wave of blood and death. It is what she used to kill the first She-Ra. And now, that power is ours.”

“You mean the Council of Evil, right?” Tri-Klops asked suspiciously.

“Of course,” said Hordak, smirking. “Imagine, raising an army of unkillable warriors, our ranks growing with every enemy slain. We will march our soldiers of the undead onto Eternos. The Masters will rise to meet the challenge. They will fight back. And when they realize that all of their efforts are in vein, we will slaughter them and raise them to destroy everything they hold dear. And He-Man inevitably shows, he will only be able to watch in horror as his whole world fall apart around him.”

The Evil Warriors, who had been shaking like scared little children, were now laughing maliciously. The idea of the undead Masters serving them was too good. Hordak’s cast a conspiratorial smirk at the villains –

** _BOOM!_ **

The wall on the opposite side of the chamber exploded, flinging stone chunks in every direction and casting a large cloud of dust. Beastman, Trap Jaw, Whiplash, and Mer-Man were back to holding each other; Tri-klops sighed at his incompetent allies; Hordak narrowed his eyes. As the dust settled, it came as no surprise to Hordak to find He-Man standing at the front of the collective members of the Master of the Universe (and Catra and Melog, but that goes without saying.)

“Do we know how to make an entrance or what?” Catra chuckled, high-fiving Mekaneck.

“Hand over the book, Hordak!” He-Man demanded, waving his sword.

“I think not He – “

“Wait, _that’s_ Hordak?” said Catra, looking wide-eyed at the Horde lord. “Wow, and I thought old Hordak was ugly.”

“….Kill them,” Hordak grumbled.

Tri-Klops jumped ahead of his associates, spinning his headgear to the red lens, and shot a fireball at the Masters. Man-At-Arms unfolded his round shield and blocked the fire while everyone else scattered, then brought out his mace. He charged across the chamber, deflecting Tri-klops’ potshots with his shield, and swung his weapon down when within reach. Tri-Klops whipped out his own sword just in time to block, locking them in place. Man-At-Arms swung his shield at Tri-Klops, hitting him across the jaw and making him stumble backward, then followed up with an underhanded swing with his mace that knocked the Evil Warrior flat on his back.

Beastman snarled like the wild animal he was as he locked hands with Man-E-Monster, the two of them pushing against each other for dominance. But what Beastman had not expected was for Man-E-Monster to relent, taking a step back to let the wild man fall forward, and was then tackled by Ram Man from the side, smashing him into the wall. Trap Jaw was trying to shoot Buzz-Off out of the air with his arm cannon, but the Andreenian was moving around too fast for his shots to keep up. Buzz-Off hefted his spear and threw it, accurately lodging the shaft in Trap Jaw’s arm cannon. Without any way of discharging the building energy, Trap Jaw’s arm exploded and he hit the ground in a smoking pile.

Mekaneck jumped over Whiplash’s barbed tail as it swung around his ankles, then quickly ducked as he came around for a second time. Whiplash started winding up for a third swing when Mekaneck stretched his namesake and headbutted the rogue Caligar’s face. Whiplash stumbled, shaking the daze out of his eyes and rubbing the soreness of his nose with an irritated scowl. He started charging on Mekaneck when Catra’s whip suddenly flew in and tightened around Whiplash’s feet, tripping him up. The Caligar slammed into the ground on his belly, moaning, then looked up right before Mekaneck brought his club down. With Whiplash effectively knocked out, Mekaneck shot an appreciative thumbs-up to Catra, who smirked in response.

And Mer-Man…well, Sy-Klone shot him out of the room with a whirlwind in the first ten seconds.

When He-Man goes to strike Hordak, the lord of evil summons his own sword in a haze of black smoke and swings meet him halfway, creating a shower of sparks. He-Man swings his Sword of Power back and forth with both hands, giving it everything he’s got, but Hordak deflects each blow with only one hand while the other was still grasped around the book. It was a testament to how powerful Hordak was. Teela tried sneaking up behind Hordak while he and He-man, but when the warrior woman jumped at him, Hordak casually sidestepped, letting Teela fall into He-Man. The Man of Power quickly threw out his arms to catch her, then immediately raised his sword to block a swing from Hordak. He-Man slid backward across the room by ten feet, a painful tingling sensation running down the length of his arm.

“You were foolish to come here, He-Man,” Hordak snorted. “Have you forgotten that I am strongest within my own domain. The Dark Hemisphere fuels me, gives me strength. You stand no chance against my power.”

“Maybe not,” He-Man admitted, setting Teela back on her feet, “but I won’t let the Council of Evil get their hands on that book.”

“Hmm…Hiss opened his big mouth, didn’t he?” Hordak scowled.

“Surprising, isn’t it?” said Teela. “Usually Skeletor is usually the chatty one. He must be rubbing off on you guys.”

“It doesn’t matter,” said Hordak. “You are outmatched, He-Man. You doom is near.”

“It doesn’t matter how many of you there are, Hordak!” said He-Man firmly. “We will stop you!”

“How about an army of one!”

The Masters and the Evil Warriors faced the entrance that Hordak created earlier. Adora stood dramatically at the front, the Sword of Protection in hand, flanked by Bow and Glimmer with arrows and sparkles at the ready.

“So, what? Are you just gonna keep appearing dramatically at the last second?” said Teela exasperatedly.

“That’s the plan!” Glimmer answered enthusiastically; Teela face-palmed.

“So, the mighty She-Ra has finally made her appearance,” Hordak snorted.

“Uh…who’s the big creepy guy that looks like a bat?” Adora asked curiously.

“That’s Hordak,” Bow hissed out of the corner of his mouth. “I mean, Eternian Hordak. You know, the guy your brother’s always fighting.”

“_That’s _Hordak!” Adora gasped dumbfoundedly. “Wow, and I thought old Hordak was ugly.”

“…You’re dead; I’m killing you myself,” Hordak grumbled flatly.

“Give it your best shot!” Adroa challenged, raising the Sword of Protection to the sky. “**_For the Honor of Grayskull!_**”

The Evil Warriors screamed in pain, shielding their eyes from the sudden burst of light; the Masters had the sense to look away just in time. When the light faded and darkness returned, another new She-Ra presented herself. Unlike the last two versions, this She-Ra was covered from head-to-toe in thick, heavy-looking white-and-gold knight’s armor. Her chest plate was emblazoned with the Princess of Power’s emblem, the cape somehow extra sparkly like it was made of rubies, and her head was concealed under a white, gold-trimmed helmet with her eyes gleaming like headlights through the holes. And spikes. There were spikes everywhere; her shoulders, her boots, her gauntlets, her cape, her helmet – everywhere. Catra suspected that Glimmer may have contributed to that.

“…Wow,” said Tri-Klops, looking crossed between astonished and bewildered.

“Ha-ha!” Glimmer shouted victoriously. “Bow, lowly mortals, to the awesomeness of She-Ra! Prepare to have your butts kicked! Get ‘em, She-Ra!”

The Queen of Bright Moon pointed to the Evil Warriors, who yelped together and huddled in fear of the terrifying princess…. An awkward pause of silence filled the tomb. Glimmer blinked dimwittedly and looked back at She-Ra. The Princess of Power was still standing there.

“I _said_,” Glimmer repeated, emphasizing. “Get ‘em, She-Ra!” Another uncomfortable pause passed; Beastman coughed awkwardly. Scowling, Glimmer spun around on her best friend, stomping her foot. “Adora, you’re making me look back. Kick their butts already.”

“I…can’t,” said Adora nervously.

“Whaddya mean you can’t?” Bow questioned.

“I can’t move,” said She-Ra. To prove her point, she started wiggling inside her armor, which seemed to be stuck in place like it had been permanently glued that way. When the Princess of Power started jumping, she managed to hop a few inches. But she tripped over a loose stone and fell face forward with a _clatter_; Glimmer and Bow winced. “Help….”

“I never thought it’d happen,” said Mekaneck, “but there’s someone with an even more embarrassing power than me.”

“This is the best you have to offer?” Hordak sniffed. “Such a – “

“Yoink!” Teela suddenly yelled.

Without him realizing it, Teela had ran up to the Horde master and ripped the Book of the Dead right out of his claws. It took a moment for Hordak catch up, but when he did, he took a thunderous step toward the woman. He didn’t make it far before he was suddenly lifted from behind. He-Man raised the vile warlord overhead and them tossed him across the room, sending him crashing through the opposite wall. Hordak rose into a sitting position, mostly unharmed, but that didn’t stop Tri-Klops, Trap Jaw, Whiplash, and Beastman from running to his aid.

“Lord Hordak, are you all right?” asked Tri-Klops.

“I’m fine; merely a scratch,” Hordak reassured him as he rose to his feet, pleased that the Evil Warrior addressed him by his proper title. Though the Masters were now in possession of the book, Hordak was smiling strangely. “We will let you go this time, He-Man. But rest assure, there is still more to come.”

The Master of Evil raised his claw to the ceiling, summoning a black-and-red vortex underneath the Evil Warrior’s feet. The vortex rose before any of the Masters had a chance to stop them, and the Evil Warriors vanished into thin air.

But, unfortunately, Mer-Man stumbled into the room a moment later, holding his head, completely oblivious to what transpired.

“Oooh…what happened?” Mer-Man bubbled, looking around. “Hey…where did everybody go?” He then noticed the Masters off on the side, most of them glaring with their weapons drawn. Mer-Man visibly deflated. “Oh, crud….”

Meanwhile, Glimmer and Bow trying to lift the unbearably heavy Princess of Power off the ground, only succeeding by a foot or two.

“I think…we need…to go back… to the drawing board,” Bow grunted. He lost his grip and winced as his friend smacked the ground again with a pained moan. “Sorry…”

* * *

Skeletor stood at the mouth of Snake Mountain again that day, gazing over the gathered army that mingled at the base of the mountain and pleasantly surprised by the stark contrast from this morning. The Horde soldiers seemed to have gotten their act together and created an efficient delivery system to move supplies from the vehicles to the Council’s base. His own Evil Warriors had only returned moments ago and were stunningly more cooperative with the Horde; no one argued who should be giving orders and he should be doing the menial labor. Skeletor only wished the independent villains like Shokoti or the Evil Mutants would be helpful, but they were a different case from the nameless grunt. Getting them to play nice would trickier.

Skeletor barely tilted his head to the side as he heard the telltale footfalls of King Hiss and Hordak approaching. He turned around to face them, barely noticing Shadow Weaver gliding silently between them. He really needed to put a bell on that woman.

“I see your excursions have worked out in your favor,” said Skeletor amusingly.

“The Horde soldiersss were easssily satisssfied after a few complimentsss and promissses of power,” said King Hiss. “I won over the generalsss in ssshort time, though Evil-Lyn ssstill remainsss sussspiciousss of me.”

“No surprise there,” said Skeletor. “She was the only one among my Evil Warriors with any brains.” He turned to Hordak. “Speaking of which, how did you enjoy your field trip?”

“I cannot fathom why you bother with such spineless cretins,” Hordak snorts. “They are weak, cowardly, and incompetent. One of them was even captured by the Masters.”

“Well, it was just Mer-Man – no real loss there,” said Skeletor nonchalantly. “Trust me, the real reason I wanted this Council of Evil to work was because I couldn’t stand being around those idiots any longer.”

“Whatever the case may be, they suddenly think I’m their friend now,” said Hordak with a sneer. “I was degrading, having to…be nice to those worthless bags of flesh.”

“But it worked, didn’t it?” said Shadow Weaver coolly. “You showered them with respect and generosity and now they return it in kind. People are simplistic by nature, looking for acceptance, even from those who are unlikely to give it.”

“Something you would know from experience, wouldn’t you?” Skeletor taunted.

Shadow Weaver narrowed her eyes, but kept her voice level, “The Horde and Skeletor’s henchmen have learned to cooperate. That just leaves….”

Whatever she was going to say next was drowned over by a thunderous _crash_ and the clattering of metal from below. The villainous overlords moved to the edge of the mouth and looked down. Several crates had been tipped over – yet again – and slipped a small hill of loose machine parts all over the ground. On one side was Rattlor spitting furiously, backed by a legion of Snake Men. On the other, the Horde and the Evil Warriors were yelled furious obscenities at the humanoid reptiles. This was a start contrast from earlier where all sides were against one another.

“Convincccing the Sssnake Men will not be an easssy feat,” said King Hiss. “Though they are willing to put their own persssonal interesssts assside for their king, they will not be ssso generousss to outsssides. Sssnake Men are proud warriorsss and do not hand out trussst ssso easily.”

“That’s just because they haven’t had someone to set a good example for them,” said Skeletor confidently. “Once they learn the benefits of putting their faith in our hands, they will come over to our side eventually. All it takes is one person to lead the rest…. And I know just the snake for the job.”

Skeletor’s empty sockets peered down at the nest of Snake Men, searching the front lines until his sightless gaze fell on the smallest reptile of the group: Kobra Khan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Once again, I somehow ended up making this chapter much long than intended and ended up having to cut the whole thing into two parts, wasting a whole lot of mine and your time waiting to get this posted. I tried to make the battle scenes short and simple in the first part because there are so many of them this time and I wanted to focus more on the story aspect. Don’t worry, I promise to make the battle extra detailed in the next chapter, which is pretty much one-third of the way finished because I took so long and will hopefully be done sometime in the next two weeks or sooner.
> 
> Fun fact: I based Adora’s first rejected outfit on a “concept art” of what Adora would’ve looked like in He-Man 200X and Bow’s fantasy in the episode “Roll with It” (https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Do9AlmpUwAEbslo.jpg)
> 
> While we’re at it, let’s go ahead and start another vote for what you want to see after part 2. Once again, these chapters occur in the same timeframe and focus on the other Best Friend Squad, the Super Pal Trio! Here are your options:
> 
> 1) After many weeks of searching, Catra finally has a lead on her best friend, Scorpia. Word has it that she has been taken by the Reptile Men that dwell in the Sands of Time. Catra, Glimmer, and Teela set out to rescue her, but Shadow Weaver is also on her way, seeking to reclaim what was once hers.
> 
> 2) Technology has once again shut down across Eternia, leading Adam, Adora, Bow, and Man-At-Arms to seek out Sortech to resolve the issue. But when they arrive at the ruins of the Machine City, they are met instead by an old (potentially insane) friend and…a winking Hordak?


	12. The Princess's New Clothes, Part 2

The dining hall of Eternos was filled with laughter from the valiant heroes returning from battle. Adam sat between Teela and Bow as he watched his friends _destroy _the feast that the palace cooks had prepared for them when news of their second victory of the day spread. Ram Man was expectedly the biggest eater of the bunch, but Glimmer was surprisingly vicious herself at the dinner table when no manners were involved. Adam doubled over with laughter as the Queen of Bright Moon was having a tug-o’-war with Mekaneck over a turkey leg, not noticing that Ram Man had stolen the whole chicken. Overall, everyone seemed to be having a good time…. Everyone except….

“We really shouldn’t be relaxing like this,” Teela announced, drawing the attention of the other heroes. “We should be preparing for when the scouts report the next sighting. We’ve already run into Hiss with the Horde and Hordak with Skeletor’s goons, so then next possibility is that Skeletor is going to show up somewhere with the Snake Men.”

“It’s not that we aren’t worried, Teela,” said Stratos calmly. “But resting between bouts isn’t a bad thing. As you said, we already ran into two of our biggest enemies today, so we should be resting our bodies in case Skeletor does make an appearance.”

“Besides, we captured one of their guys,” Bow added enthusiastically. “So that’s a huge win for us.”

“It’s Mer-Man – we catch the guy at least once a month,” said Buzz-Off. “Huh, now that I think about it, how does he keep getting out, anyway?”

“**I have fifty-seven various theories on this phenomenon,**” said Roboto, who was standing in the corner while M’ythra climbed him like a cat tower. “**Would you like to hear them? My personal favorite is theory No. 29.**”

“Yeeeah, we’re good, Roboto,” said Mekaneck.

“All right, you made your point,” said Teela, leaning back in her chair, arms crossed. “But we should be thinking about what to do about the new Council of Evil. The last one nearly destroyed us and that was with just a handful of independent villains. Now the three biggest threats to Eternia are working together.”

“Teela’s right,” said Adam, frowning. “We could barely take on Skeletor, Hiss, and Hordak on their own.”

“Don’t forget they have Shadow Weaver with them,” Glimmer added nastily, taking an angry bite out of the hard-won turkey leg.

“Yeah, her, too,” said Adam. “I hate to think of what they could get up to when they work together.”

“Well…it could be worst,” said Bow, trying to sound optimistic. “At least we stopped them from getting that book that brings back the dead, right?”

“I wouldn’t be so sure about that.”

Man-At-Arms had stepped into the dining hall, and he was carrying the Book of the Dead under his arm. He dropped the book on the table with a clatter and those closest to him (Mekaneck and Ram Man) skittered back as if worried the book would suddenly jump up and bite them.

“What’s wrong, father?” Teela asked worriedly. “Did you decipher the spell book?”

“There’s nothing to decipher,” said Man-At-Arms, rubbing the bridge of his nose. “It’s written in basic Eternian. And it’s not a spell book. It’s a history book.”

“Come again?” said Glimmer dumbfoundedly.

Rather than explain it, Man-At-Arms slid the book across the table until it stopped in front of Adam. The young prince picked up the book, noting that Bow and Teela were staring over his shoulder, and flipped the cover open. The first page had the title of the book, which was written in basic Eternian like Duncan said. But instead of “The Book of the Dead” like he was expecting, what it said was –

“‘_The Complete History of Farming and Its Effect on Eternian Culture, Vol.57_’” Adam read aloud. “Wow, I don’t know what’s worse: the book being fake, or that someone actually took the time to make fifty-seven books on farming.”

“It seems to me like someone pressed a new cover on to make it _look_ like it was the Book of the Dead,” said Man-At-Arms. “That’s considering if such a book ever existed in the first place. There’s no telling if Hordak knew about this or not, but considering that the stone Hiss tried to take was also fake, I’m leaning toward the former.”

“So that’s two ancient magical artifacts that the council of Evil were chasing,” said Bow, stroking his chin thoughtfully. “And both of them turned out to be faked. Do you think the Council of Evil planned this or something?”

“Perhaps they’re trying to lure us into a false sense of security,” Sy-Klone suggested.

“Maybe, but it’s hard to tell what they’re after,” said Man-At-Arm. “We should ask the King what he thinks about this. Speaking of which,” he added, looking around. “Has anyone seen Adora?”

Glimmer, Bow, and Adam just shook their heads and exchanged sympathetic glances.

* * *

Adora had pretty much isolated herself in her and Catra’s shared room. She had closed the curtains over the tall windows so that the only source of light came from the candle on her work desk. The princess looked frazzled; one hand threading her (not ridiculous!) hair poof, the other tapping the pencil incessantly on the blanket paper that taunted her. The desk was littered with crumpled up failures, only because her wastebasket was overflowing. Adora knew she must have looked like a maniac, but she couldn’t bring herself to care; her future was on the line here! (And her sanity may be slipping as well…)

Then, all of a sudden, the curtains were pulled back and flooded the room with sunlight. Adora hissed, shielding herself from the evil, evil sun, and fell backward off her chair. As she lay on her back in a daze, she heard a familiar squeaky laugh and sure enough, once her vision adjusted, she stared up at the face of her soon-to-be-dead fiancé.

“_Hey, Adora_,” Catra teased.

“Do you _have _to be an obnoxious brat?” Adora grumbled.

“Yes, yes, I do,” Catra answered amusingly. The blonde princess climbed back to her chair and Catra seated herself on the desk, grabbing one of the rejected designs and unfolding it. “So, still obsessing over She-Ra’s new outfit?”

“It’s not an obsession,” said Adora defensively.

“Take it from someone who knows a thing or two about unhealthy obsessions,” said Catra, crumpling the paper back up and throwing it over her shoulder.

“Is there a reason you’re here?” Adora asked irritably. "Did Duncan figure out what was in that spell book?"

“Yeah, I talked to him out in the hall,” said Catra, picking at her claws nonchalantly. “Turns out it’s not a spell book. It’s a history book on farming.”

“What?” Adora snapped her head up, confused.

“Yep, ‘_The Complete History of Farming and Its Effect on Eternian Culture, Vol.57_’.” Catra recited in a dry tone. “Whoever thought it would be a good idea to write fifty-seven volumes about farming must have been a real masochist.”

“So that’s another relic the Council of Evil hunted that turned out to be fake,” Adora hummed. “Did they know about this? What were they thinking?”

“I was just about to ask you the same thing,” said Catra, flashing one of Adora’s failed designs. “Crocs? Really, Adora? You actually found something worse than the unitard.”

“It was a phase!” Adora yelped embarrassingly, snatching the paper away.

“Adora, seriously, this is getting a little out of control.” Said Catra exasperatedly. “Just go back to the unitard and start kicking ass again.”

“No! I can’t go back to wearing that ugly thing!” Adora cried. “Everyone will just keep making fun of me again!”

“Since when have you cared how you looked?” asked Catra sternly. “I made fun of you all the time during the war, and you never cared.”

“Yeah, well, it’s…um…,” Adora mumbled weakly.

“You wanna say that again?” said Catra, her brow raised.

“It’s because everyone else liked her, all right!” Adora snapped, slamming her fist on the desk. Catra waited patiently for the blonde princess to catch her breath, staring at her intently. “I’m sorry, don’t take this the wrong way, but…. Back on Etheria, everyone loved She-Ra, so it didn’t matter what you thought. To them, She-Ra was a goddess. But ever since we landed on Eternia, She-Ra’s just another face in the crowd. I used to think that She-Ra was the strongest person in the universe, but now there are literally dozens of people who can kick She-Ra’s butt. No one is afraid of her and everyone keeps making fun of her every chance they get. I thought if I made She-Ra look…cool, maybe I’d get a little more respect around here…”

“Oh, Adora…you are such an idiot,” said Catra humorously. She poked the princess’s forehead, making her go cross-eyed. “People didn’t love She-Ra because she was strong or looked cool. They loved her because she was a hero. When the Horde – and by some teeny-tiny itty-bitty extension, me – were killing the world, She-Ra showed up to save everyone. They didn’t care what you looked like, they cared about what you did. Although, I’m pretty sure Perfuma had a huge crush on She-Ra,” she mumbled darkly; Adora giggled. “The point is…stop worrying about what people think. The only thing that should matter is what you think. Whether or not you wear a unitard or anything else, that’s your decision. So, answer me, Adora,” She leaned in close, their faces only inches apart that Adora almost thinks she was going to kiss her. “What do _you _want?”

Adora gave a slight pause as she looked down again in thought. People always joked that Catra was the brains of the Best Friend Squad, but this was one of those moments where she had to agree with them.

For as long as Adora remembered, she had put the opinions of others (especially Shadow Weaver) before her own; a habit she had been trying to break with Perfuma’s therapy sessions. It never made her happy before, and she wasn’t happy now. Now that she was putting it in perspective, she admitted that Catra was right: she was an idiot. Obsessing over how she looked when she _should _have been helping her brother and the Masters fighting off Hiss and Hordak. Well, Adora thought as she crumpled up the blank paper and threw it away, it’s about time she got her act together.

“And between you and me,” Catra added, looking like she had won some unspoken argument “I think Adora is _waaay _cooler than She-Ra.”

Adora turned to her fiancé, flushing at the compliment. She was so lucky to have someone like Catra by her side, pulling her own of her own headspace when she was losing herself. And she was just as grateful to Glimmer and Bow, who, despite being equally as obsessive about She-Ra’s outfit, were always there to have her back. They were everything to her….

Suddenly, Adora sat up straight in her chair as she was struck with an epiphany. That’s it! The answer was right in front of her the whole time! How could she not have seen it sooner?!

Before Adora had a chance to share her idea with Catra, Adam suddenly barged into the room, his Sword of Power already in hand.

“Guess who just popped up in the jungle outside of Felis Qadi?” he said.

“Skeletor?” Catra answered simply.

“Yep, and he’s with the Snake Men,” said Adam, frowning. “Man-At-Arms thinks they might be after another ancient artifact. It could end up being fake like the others, but we can’t take the risk of them actually finding something that could put Eternia in danger. Everyone’s getting ready to head out – “

But Adora tuned out the rest of her brother’s words when she heard the Sorceress’s voice echoing in her head:

“**_Adora, return to Castle Grayskull at once. She-Ra’s new blade is ready._**”

“I’ll be there in a minute,” Adora said to the ceiling, then faced Catra and Adam, who wore knowing looks. “The Sorceress finished She-Ra’s new sword. I need to make a quick stop to Castle Grayskull before heading out.” She pushed between her brother and fiancé and dashed out the room, shouting behind her. “I’ll take Glimmer and meet you there! Don’t wait up for me!”

* * *

Skeletor was going to kill Shadow Weaver. No, wait, he still needed her – viciously beat into submission, then.

He hated forests, jungles, and swamps of all kinds. They were always so humid – and for a guy with no skin on his face, that was a serious issue – plus there was all the bugs that bit him, leaving irritating welts on his skin for hours, And yet, here he was, scavenging through the wild terrain outside of Felis Qadi on Shadow Weaver’s insistence. And even worse, the self-proclaimed master of evil felt he had gotten the short end of the stick with the group he had been stuck with.

Having a small army of Snake Men at his back held no real assurance when they were all glaring at him through slitted eyes and lashing tongues like the hungry predators they were. Kobra Khan stayed particularly close to Skeletor like a fly in tree sap. The term “keep your friends close and your enemies closer” came to the forefront of Skeletor’s mind. He clearly suspected foul play, which was fair since Skeletor had contemplated revenge on the treasonous snake after he had betrayed Skeletor’s generosity in the past. And of course, Rattlor, Tung Lashor, and Sssqueeze were at the head of the pack just behind Hiss’s right hand.

Skeletor could see without looking that the three generals were looking for some reason – any tiny, insignificant excuse – to kill Skeletor where he stood, to pounce him and feast on his corpse without consequence. The bone-faced sorceress had no fear of the reptiles; he could blast them all to dust on a whim as he wished. But Skeletor knew it wouldn’t come to that. King Hiss had made it very clear to his generals that they were to follow his orders and the Snake Men obeyed their king without question, something Skeletor silently wished he could inspire in his own men.

Skeletor cut through the thick brush of the jungle terrain with his sword when he heard the Snake Men hissing behind him.

“Let’s just eat him and go on ourselves,” Sssqueeze muttered to his comrades. “We could say that he perished in an unfortunate accident. Or better yet, say that He-Man finished him off.”

“There’s a reason King Hiss never trusts you to lead,” Rattlor scowled. “He-Man wouldn’t kill Skeletor. He’s had many chances in the past as proof.”

“And if you imbeciles don’t shut your mouths, he will know about your treachery as well,” Kobra Khan threatened over his shoulder. “Just keep walking.”

“You speak of treachery, yet you willingly follow this usurper,” said Rattlor pointedly.

“Because that is what King Hiss commanded,” Kobra Khan answered like it was obvious. “If King Hiss tells us to obey Skeletor, then we will swallow our pride and carrying out his wishes. Or have you forgotten that King Hiss’s word is absolute, _former _General Rattlor.” He snickered wickedly at the large reptiles heated scowl. “If you so casually disregard King Hiss’s orders, then he was right to cast you aside – “

That snapped what little restraint Rattlor had left. The brawnier Snake Man lunged forward and tackled Kobra Khan into the nearest tree, lifting him off the ground by his chest with only one hand. Kobra Khan hissed and expanded his hood, seconds from spraying his venom, but Rattlor clamped his mouth shut with his other hand. The generals chortled vindictively as King Hiss’s right hand flailed wildly to break loose to no avail. The foot soldiers watched the altercation silently from the background, awaiting the outcome that could potentially lead to a change in the hierarchy. The Snake Men, for all their worth, had a very simple concept of the pecking order.

“Not so tough when you’re not cowering behind King Hiss, are you?” Rattlor snarled. “I’ve always wanted to shut that fat mouth of yours and it was surprisingly easy. You’re pathe – “

** _BAM! BAM! BAM!_ **

Rattlor was blasted off his feet by a concussive beam of energy, followed in short order by Sssqueeze and Tung Lashor. The three heavyset Snake Men crumpled into a pile of groaning bodies at the feet of their soldiers while Kobra Khan fell to his knees, coughing. A pair of blue-skinned feet appeared in his vision and the smallest Snake Man craned his head back. Skeletor stared silently down on him for a long moment, his hollow eyes burrowing into Khan’s. And then, to Khan’s shock, the skull-faced sorcerer offered his hand. Kobra Khan hesitated, contemplating potential treachery. But, cautiously, he took the hand and allowed himself to be pulled to his feet. When Kobra Khan was standing, Skeletor turned on the other Snake Men as they were pulling themselves apart, leering at the wicked sorcerer.

“Are you idiots done messing around?” said Skeletor. “This is an important mission that will benefit the Council of Evil, and by extension, your king. You should follow Kobra Khan’s example. You could learn a thing or two about loyalty.” He turned with a swish of his cape, walking past a proud-looking Kobra Khan. He stopped a few paces away and said over his shoulder, “Oh, and if you even think about betraying me, I will be sure to tell Hiss that his men suffered an ‘unfortunate accident.’”

Kobra Khan flashed his fangs in a smug grin before chasing after Skeletor, now walking side-by-side with him instead of behind. The skull-faced didn’t even bat an eye (not that he had any) at the shift and pressed on, which Khan took as acceptance. The Snake Men stared at their fleeting backsides, then looked to the generals still on the ground on their knees. A silent debate passed between the soldiers before they all marched in step behind Skeletor and Kobra Khan. Rattlor and his fellow generals grumbled obscenities under their breath, but followed nonetheless.

They continued to meander through the jungle, chopping down the pesky flora that stood in their way, when Kobra Khan asked, “So, what are we searching for, Skeletor?”

“According to Shadow Weaver’s research on Eternian legend, there is a weapon called the Sword of Masters, which is said to rival the power of He-Man and She-Ra’s blades,” answered Skeletor, cleaving a thick tree that blocked their path. “According to ancient lore, it was forged by three otherworldly goddesses and used to slay the Demon King Decease. It is said the sword was a precursor to the Sword of Power wielded by King Grayskull in Preternian times and modeled after the legendary blade.”

“If this sword is so great, they why didn’t Grayskull take it for himself, huh?” Tung Lashor questioned.

“Because the Sword of Master’s isn’t just a weapon, you ignorant lizard,” said Skeletor scathingly. “It is also a prison for the soul of the Demon King Decease. When he was slain, the Demon King’s lifeforce was absorbed into the Sword of Masters. Whoever wields the sword will be corrupted, taken possession by the spirit of the Evil King. They Demon King’s dark magic with flow through their veins and they shall lay waste to all of Eternia. To prevent Decease’s influence from getting out, they built a temple deep within these woods and stashed the sword inside where no one would find them. Well, that is until now.”

And you’re no afraid that you’ll be possessed by the Demon King?” Sssqueeze questioned

“Fortunately, I’m already a heartless monster, so I have nothing to fear from Decease’s influence,” said Skeletor nonchalantly.

“Such a weapon should belong to King Hiss if it’s so important,” Rattlor proclaimed.

“You really should learn to think before opening your fat mouth, _former _general,” Kobra Khan mocked; Rattlor seethed. “King Hiss has no use for such a weapon – he is all-powerful. But even King Hiss must have his equals if the Council of Evil is to thrive. The Sword of Masters shall bestow the power of the Demon King Decease upon Skeletor so that he may stand by our master’s side.”

Skeletor felt torn between appreciating Kobra Khan’s defense and beating the scales off of him for imply that he was weaker than Hiss. Fortunately, he didn’t need to make the decision right away as he cut away the brush in front of him and realized that they had arrived at their destination.

A dilapidated set of ruins lay before them in the shadow of a thick yew tree as wide as Snake Mountain. Most of the building had been torn down and covered in blankets of ivy from centuries of neglect, leaving the entire space open. They stepped over the low brick walls and crossed the broken and dirty tiled floor. Holes where windows once were still had glass on the sills, moth-eaten cloth strewed on the ground with indecipherable emblems. And in the center of the ruins, at the top of a small set of stairs and stabbed into a pedestal, was the item they sought. The blade of the broadsword still gleamed after supposedly lying there for centuries, looking wholely unimpressive compared to He-Man’s hulking blade or She-Ra’s sparkling a sword.

“Ah, the Sword of Masters,” said Skeletor in a low tone, stopping feet short of the blade. He turned to Kobra Khan and said, “Would you like to do the honors?”

“Me?” asked Kobra Khan, taken aback.

“Of course,” said Skeletor as he set a hand on the Snake Man’s shoulder, laying it on thick with the praising accent. “Unlike the others, I trust you. I know you will do what is right by the Council of Evil, which is why I am confident that you will not betray me or King Hiss’s wishes.”

Kobra Khans chest swelled with pride. This was one of the many times Skeletor was grateful that he didn’t have lips, otherwise his amused grin would’ve given him away.

The smaller Snake Man marched up the few short stairs and stood in front of the pedestal, grasping the sword with both hands. He glanced over his shoulder to the gathered army looking up at him, waiting on baited breath; a sly snicker escaped his throat at the generals’ irritated faces. Kobra Khan tugged at the blade once and realized just how deep the sword was lodged in. He tugged a second time and the sword moved a few inches. By the third pull, he successfully pried the sword loose, nearly stumbling backward. Kobra Khan’s slitted eyes roamed over the sword, admiring how the sparse rays of light gleamed off the blade. It was a magnificent sword…except….

“I…don’t feel any power,” said Kobra Khan, wondering if he had done something wrong.

“Of course you don’t,” said Skeletor. “The power of the Demon King is subtle. Deceptive and silent. The longer you hold that sword, the more the Demon King begins to slip his own darkness into you until you have been thoroughly saturated in his evil. And when the full power of the Demon King has been unleashed, we shall spread eternal darkness over Eternia. We will choke the light in shadows.” He held his fists in the air in a dramatic pose. “And then, when He-Man lies beaten and broken at my – I mean, our – feet, we shall march our army onto Castle Grayskull and take what is rightfully mine – I mean, ours!”

“But before we do that….”

All of a sudden, without warning, the skull-faced sorcerer spun around and shot a bolt of energy from his Havok Staff at the ground fifteen feet away. The Snake Men lurched back, spitting angrily at Skeletor, when Catra appeared out of thin air, hitting the ground on her side with Melog next to her. The Snake Men turned their hatred on the Magicat with Kobra Khan the most vocal, unconsciously touching the white scratches on his chest where Catra’s claws had sliced into him during their last encounter.

Catra rolled over on her hands and knees, shaking her head free of the daze, when a purple aura surrounded her and plucked her and Melog off the ground. Skeletor levitated the pair to dangle in front of him; the Magicat flailed back and forth to break loose with no success.

“Hello again, Catra,” Skeletor greeted pleasantly. “We really have to stop meeting like this. Keep this up and one may mistake you for a damsel in distress instead of a warrior.”

“Trust me, Skelly, no one’s gonna mistake me for a damsel,” said Catra jokingly.

“And this creature you’re with – it wasn’t here last time we met,” said Skeletor, looking over Melog. He lifted the alien cat by its chin and Melog’s mane flared to spiky-red, just like Catra’s own bristling fur. “Such a fascinating creature – never seen anything like it on Eternian. And strong with magic, too. But that magic leaves a signature to anyone who pays attention.

“Ugh, what is it with villains and monologues?” Catra complained, rolling her eyes. “Do you just talk all the time because you love hearing the sound of your own voice.”

“Of course; my voice is the only one worth hearing,” Skeletor answered simply.

“Wow, and I thought Shadow Weaver was a narcissist,” said Catra, stupefied by his bluntness.

Kobra Khan shouldered his way past Skeletor (the malevolent sorcerer reigned in his fury, but his hollow sockets still glowed red) and marched up to the Magicat. The smallest Snake Man hissed and spat a little venom on Catra’s face, the droplets only narrowly missing her eyes and making her wince. Catra briefly pondered why he seemed so angry with her when her memory flashback to the caverns of Subternia when this particular Snake Man had M’ythra trapped in his scaly hands.

“Oh, hey, fang face,” Catra teased. “See ya got yourself patched up there.”

Kobra Khan spat viciously, then suddenly stabbed the ancient sword at Catra’s head. Only it missed by a few inches to the left, just clipping a few sparse hairs. Catra had the sense to keep her mouth shut after that, eyes practically bulging as she looked between the sword and the Snake Man. For a moment – just the tiniest half-second – Catra thought she saw a glint of uncertainty in Kobra Khan’s eyes. But it disappeared before she could get a second look. Thankfully, Skeletor chose to step in and eased the Snake Man away from the Magicat.

“Now, now, let’s not be too hasty,” said Skeletor calmly. “We wouldn’t want to upset our other guests…. Isn’t that right, He-Man?”

Skeletor tilted his head back to the thick branches of the yew tree above them, catching the faint outline of a large shadow lurking in the leaves. At Skeletor’s call, the darkened figure jumped from the branch and Skeletor pulled Kobra Khan a safe distance away from Catra and Melog before the hulking figure crashed into the ground, making the ground tremble like a miniature earthquake. And there He-Man stood heroically with his Sword of Power held in one hand and Catra and Melog held securely in the other. The Magicat Princess blinked, then started feeling He-Man’s bulging muscles with a sly grin.

“Maybe there’re some perks to this damsel in distress thing,” she said.

“Always have to make the dramatic entrance, don’t you, He-Man?” Skeletor said coolly as the Snake Man rallied behind him. The Masters of the Universe (and Bow) dropped down from their hiding spots in the tree to do the same for He-Man. “Oh good, the whole gang’s here. Now it’s a party.”

“Surrender, Skele – “

“’Surrender Skeletor,’ bah!” Skeletor scoffed. “Honestly, He-Man, you need some new material. That one’s getting a bit stale.”

“Hand over the sword, creeps,” Teela threatened, presenting her staff, “or someone’s going to get hurt.”

“Someone is going to get hurt,” said Sssqueeze, chortling. “But it won’t be us.”

“What is the Council of Evil planning, Skeletor?” Man-At-Arms questioned immediately. “You, Hordak, and Hiss have been running around Eternia all day with each other’s groups, hunting down ancient artifacts that all turn out to be fakes. Is that sword a fake, too? What’s the endgame?”

“Fake artifacts?” Rattlor hissed, stomping closer to Skeletor with a suspicious gaze. “Is what they’re saying true? Did you lead us out here on a lie?!”

“Jumping to conclusions are we, Rattlor?” Skeletor replied in a low voice. “Don’t forget that your king was also searching for powerful relics to aid the Council of Evil and he wholeheartedly supported this venture. To doubt me would be the same as doubting your king.” He turned to the hulking reptile, his hollow sockets flaring. “You don’t doubt your king…do you, Rattlor?”

That seemed to be enough to settle the matter with Rattlor, who silently slinked back into the crowd, leering.

“As for the answer to your question, Duncan, it’s none of your business,” said Skeletor. “By the time you realize what’s happened, it will already be too late – “

“Until you start monologuing about it,” Catra interjected. “Seriously, it’s like every bad guy here loves shouting their diabolical plans out loud.”

“They do that a lot, don’t they?” Bow commented.

“I think there are more pressing concerns you should be focusing on,” said Skeletor, waving his Havok Staff. “Snake Men, destroy them!”

The small army of reptile soldiers hissed and spat as they surged forward, joined by the generals and Kobra Khan; Skeletor stayed behind, a feeling of immense satisfaction burning in his chest. Getting the Snake Men to listen to him was much easier than he thought it would be. The Masters rushed ahead to meet the Snake Men halfway and everyone scattered across the ruins.

Ram Man lowered his flat head and plowed his way through a group of ten Snake Men at once, knocking eight of them flat on the ground while the remaining two clung to him. The spitting serpents crawled across the wide expanse of Ram Man’s back, pressing themselves flat against him when the Master slammed through the dilapidated walls to knock them off. The Snake Men crawled up to his shoulders where they bared their fangs and lunged at the exposed flesh of his neck. But then a pair of arrows flew out of nowhere and lodged themselves into the Snake Man’s mouths, exploding into a cloud of pink foam that stopped them from closing their maws. The Snake Men choked and dropped on the ground. Ram Man wiped his brow in relief and waved at Bow, who was standing on a wall halfway across the ruins.

“Thanks for the save, lil’ man!” Ram Man called.

“I’ve got your back big guy!” Bow shouted back while shooting a net arrow at two Snake Men running at him.

As Bow reached for his quiver, the archer let out a sharp yelp when he felt something constrict around his ankles and suddenly lifted him into the air, accidentally dropping his weapon. He was lowered from his perched to be dangled in front of Sssqueeze, who was holding Bow off the ground with one of his length, snake-faced arms while the other hissed at his head like it was going to swallow him whole (which Bow thought might be an actual possibility.)

“Now I’ve got you,” Sssqueeze hissed.

“And I’ve got _you_!” Buzz-Off voice sounded from above.

Before Sssqueeze knew what was happening, the Andreenian warrior swooped in and plucked the Snake Man general off the ground, making him drop Bow in a brief flitter of panic. Buzz-Off carried Sssqueeze into the jungle canopy above the battlefield, purposely smashing the serpent through the branches of the trees while he himself was untouched. After getting smacked in the face for the twelfth time, Sssqueeze shook his head and hissed venomously, stretching his arms above to the Andreenian. Before he could reach Buzz-Off, the Andreenian slammed Sssqueeze into a thick branch that caused the Snake Man to practically fold in on himself. Buzz-Off finally let go of Sssqueeze’s shoulders, letting him drop twenty feet before slamming into the ground on his back.

Teele leaped over a pair of Snake soldiers, landing in a crouch behind them, then spun around to knock them at the knees with her staff. The warrior woman stood up as a large number of the reptilian soldiers started running up to her all at once. Though as confident as Teela was at her skills, there was no way she could take on a dozen Snake Men simultaneously. Which is why she was so grateful when a horizontal tornado suddenly shot out from the right side, lifting the Snake Men off the ground and catapulting them deeper into the jungle. Teela breathed a sigh of relief and faced Sy-Klone as the Gar warrior powered down.

“I could have taken them,” said Teela with a playful smirk.

“I’m sure you could,” said Sy-Klone.

In their moment of distraction, a sharp _thwip _rang through and Sy-Klone fell forward with a pained cry. Teela rushed to his aid, kneeling beside him and noticing the diagonal gash in Sy-Klone’s armor, his exposed cybernetics sparking. The Amazonian heroine barely heard the faint _thwip _in the air and flipped backwards onto her feet seconds before a narrow gash appeared in the ground where she once stood. Teela stared down Tung Lashor as the hulking Snake Man unhinged his jaw, flaying his venomous-green tongue. She sidestepped the first strike aimed at her feet, but Tung Lashor’s appendage bounced off the ground and flew up to the warrior woman’s face. Teela just barely manages to raise her staff high enough to block it, wrapping the Snake Man’s tongue around the shaft. Teela bravely tried to pull her weapon back, but Tung Lashor was physically stronger than her, even if it was just his tongue, and slowly started to pull her closer, dragging Teela’s feet across the ground.

“That’s right, keep struggling,” Tung Lashor chortled. “I like my food to have a nice kick to it.”

The Snake Man general manages to pull Teela a few inches closer when he felt a painful pressure on his tongue that cause him to let go, throwing Teela on her butt. Tung Lashor went cross-eyed when gazed down the length of his tongue and saw Fisto’s metallic hand wrapped around his appendage, unwilling to relinquish his hold as the Snake Man tried tugging it back.

“That’s my niece you got your slimy tongue all over,” said Fisto with the same tone of an overprotective parental figure.

Tung Lashor let out a small squeak when Fisto pulled the Snake man off his feet and started spinning him around like a lasso. Somewhere between ten and twenty rotations, Fisto opened his hand and Tung Lashor went rocketing into the base of the yew tree, smashing face first into the bark. The Snake Man went limp as he slid down the roots and dropped in the dirt. Fisto walked over to his niece and offered his fleshy hand to Teela.

“If anyone’s gonna give my Teela tongue, it’s gonna be Prince Adam,” Fisto teased.

“Uncle!” Teela cried, flushed.

Man-at-Arms and Mekaneck stood side-by-side against Rattlor flanked by a small group of snake soldiers. The serpent general hissed and pointed at the Masters, giving the silent command to rush them. Fortunately, Stratos flew in at the right moment and tackled three of the serpent troopers off the ground, flinging them into a cracked wall that crumbled on top of them. Man-At-Arms surged forward to meet the Snake Men halfway, shield bashing the first soldier over his head and clubbing the next in line with his mace. One of the snake soldiers got the jump on him and grappled Man-At-Arms from behind, digging their claws into his armor. As the Snake Man bared his fangs over Man-At-Arms’ shoulder, Duncan reached for his belt, pulling out a small canister, and sprayed the Snake Man with an aerosol. The snake soldier shrieked in unfathomable pain, slapping his hands over his eyes and writhing on the ground in agony.

“Well whaddya know,” said Man-At-Arms amusingly. “Bear spray works on snakes, too.”

Behind him, Mekaneck was holding his ground against four Snake Men simultaneously, using his club to deflect their claws and fangs while slowly being pushed back. Luckily, Stratos swooped and picked two serpents by the backs of their necks, lifting them high above the battlefield before dropping them. With the opening that Stratos gave him, Mekaneck extended his namesake to headbutt one of the serpent soldiers into the trees. When he pulled back, Mekaneck grabbed the last Snake Man’s wrist as they swiped their claws at him before smacking him across the face with his club, knocking them out cold.

Mekaneck looked around and spied Man-At-Arms holding off another pair of snake soldiers…but he also noticed Rattlor trying to sneak up behind him. Rattlor unhinged his jaw with his fangs aimed at Man-At-Arms back, then stretched his neck forward with a violent screech.

“Man-At-Arms, behind you!” Mekaneck called out.

But he knew Duncan wouldn’t be able to protect himself in time. In a desperate bid to help, Mekaneck stretched himself and headbutted the Rattlor from the side, making the Snake Man cry out and stumble deliriously. Man-At-Arms finally realized what happened as he spun around and quickly raised his mace to slam the underside of Rattlor’s jaw. The serpentine general retracted his neck, swaying back and forth on his feet, before falling forward with a pained groan.

“Thanks, Mekaneck,” Man-At-Arms said gratefully as the Master retracted himself.

“No…problem…,” said Mekaneck dizzily. “Now …can you do me a favor?”

“What is it?” Man-At-Arms asked.

“Make the world stop spinning….,” Mekaneck moaned, then fell flat on his back.

Catra skillfully vaulted over a pair of Snake Men that dived at her, kicking them both in the back of the head as she flew over and shoving them to the ground. The Magicat warrior raced through the ruins on all-fours, weaving through the snake soldier that threw themselves at her with little success. Catra climbed one of the walls, perching herself as she surveyed the battlefield. Everything seemed to be going fine for the Masters until she noticed an unusually large clump of Snake Men were all piled together in one spot. She narrowed her eyes in concentration when she realized that Man-E-Monster was underneath the mound, overpowering his beastly strength with sheer numbers.

Catra immediately pounced from her spot, extending her claws as she flew to the top of the pile and started swinging furiously in every direction. Her steel-cutting nailed sliced through several scaly faces, multiple arms, and may have gouged out a couple eyes in the process (not that she particularly cared.) The Snake Men started to fall off, spitting and crying from their wounds. Once enough had broken away, Man-E-Monster rose sharply to his full intimidating height and threw the rest off with a beastly roar. Man-E altered to his human face, panting as he braced himself against his knees, and shot a grateful smile to the Magicat.

“Thanks for the assist,” he said.

“Don’t thank me just yet,”

The Snake Men were getting back up and were none too pleased with the pair. Catra and Man-E-Faces stood back-to-back as the serpents circled them. As they prepare to pounce, several Snake Men were suddenly blasted away by multiple bolts of lasers. The remaining Snake Master spat with confusion, looking away, before they were tossed away. Catra and Man-E-Faces were relived where they saw Roboto stepping over the low walls, armed to the teeth with both hand cannons and his shoulder gatling unleashing a flurry of bolts that sent the serpents running.

“Your timing is perfect as always, Roboto,” Man-E-Faces complimented.

“**It was my pleasure to assist,**” said Roboto. “**It would be a shame to lose my favorite chess opponent**.”

“Aw, thanks,” said Catra and Man-E-Faces simultaneously; both gave each other sideways stares,

An entire swarm attempted to pile on He-Man to pin him down, but the title of “The Strongest Man in the Universe” wasn’t for show. He-Man lifted the mound of Snake Men above his head with little struggle and tossed them across the ruins, flinging bodies in every direction. Kobra Khan tilted his head back, watching open-mouthed as his soldiers were sent flying. He snapped his focus back on He-Man as the mighty hero unsheathed his sword, cleaving a curved gash in the ground to frighten off another group running at him. Kobra Khan raised the Sword of Masters, spitting at He-Man:

“You will not best me this time, He-Man! With this sword, I will finally slay Eternia’s righteous hero!”

“Talk is cheap, Kobra Khan,” He-Man retorted. “Why don’t you show me what you can do?”

Kobra Khan charged at He-Man with the Sword of Masters raised overhead. The hero of Eternia crossed the ruins, swinging his Sword of Power…when he found himself crossing blades with Skeletor. The skull-faced sorcerer had jumped between them, shoving Kobra Khan back, whipping out his twin sword to meet He-Man. The two arch-enemies pushed all their weight against the blades, but He-Man proved to be a little stronger and shoved the self-proclaimed Master of Evil away. Skeletor shuffled backward and summoned the Havok Staff to his hands, shooting a concussive beam of energy at the Man of Power. He-Man raised his sword parallel to his body and braced himself as the beam pushed him back, creating a pair of shallow tranches in the ground with his feet.

Kobra Khan hissed at Skeletor’s back and spat, “What is the meaning of this, Skeletor?! Why do you interfere?! I was about to defeat He-Man with this sword – “

“NO!” Skeletor snapped suddenly. Realizing his own hastiness, Skeletor toned down his voice and said, “I mean, no, that would be unwise, Kobra Khan. We can’t risk such a…valuable artifact of grave importance fall into the hands of the Masters.”

“But – “

“I’m asking you to keep the sword safe, Kobra Khan,” said Skeletor with emphasis. “You’re the only one I trust.”

That seemed to be enough to sooth whatever lingering doubt was in the Snake Man’s mind, nodding in acknowledgement. Sometimes, Skeletor though abrasively, these imbeciles were too easy to please.

The wicked sorcerer turned back to He-Man as the Man of Power leapt overhead, descending on Skeletor from above. Skeletor aimed his Havok Staff and shot several bolts of magic, but He-Man deflected the beams away by swing his sword in circles like a shield. Skeletor released his staff and grabbed his sword with both hands as He-Man slammed the Sword of Power on top of him, nearly making Skeletor’s knees buckle under the impact. Skeletor quickly pulled back before he gave in to the pressure, but jump forward again swinging his sword at He-Man’s chest. The heroic warrior dove in to meet him and the two bitter enemies slammed their blades together over and over, metal ringing through the trees, sparks flying from each clash. He-Man suddenly shifted tactics and stabbed his sword through the gap in Skeletor’s weapon. He shot his sword upwards and sent Skeletor’s weapon flinging through the air, surprisingly stabbing into the ground next to Bow, who let out surprised yelp.

He-Man pressed the tip of his sword under Skeletor’s jaw, holding him in place.

“What’re you up to, Skeletor?” He-Man questioned. “Why is the Council of Evil after fake artifacts? And why the sudden team swapping.”

“Oh, He-Man, you muscle-bound twit,” said Skeletor. What He-Man didn’t realize is that Skeletor was looking over his shoulder, silently commanding the Havok Staff that floated behind him. “You should know by now that nothing is ever what it seems.”

The Havok Staff charged its beam as Skeletor’s eyes glowed gleefully red. At the moment when he was prepared to give the order to fire, someone shouted “**SPARKLE PUNCH!” **and Skeletor was knocked sideways by a tiny fist slamming against his jaw. The Havok Staff pivoted upwards and shot its beam, narrowly missing the top of He-Man’s head and into the canopy. The Man of Power spun around and smacked the staff away with his sword, which coincidentally also landed on Bow’s other side, making him jump again.

Skeletor sat up, rubbing his aching jaw, and glared furiously at Queen Glimmer, who had suddenly appeared in front of He-Man with her fists glowed up.

“Don’t you _dare_ touch that man!” Glimmer yelled savagely. But when she looked over her shoulder, she swooned. “That beautiful, _beautiful_, beefy hunk of man.”

In the background, Bow self-consciously flex his nonexistent muscles, frowning.

“Queen Glimmer,” He-Man said relieved; Glimmer shuddered happily at the sound of her own name. “Your timing couldn’t have been any better. Is Adora with you.”

“I’m right here.”

Ever the one for dramatics, He-Man thought with an amused eyeroll. Adora stepped out into the open, walking slow and methodical like you knew she wanted to be the center of attention. And considering the sparkling new sword that she was carrying by her side, it wasn’t that hard. The new Sword of Protection was shorter and narrower than the previous version, but had a crystallized edge that looked like it could cut through Eternium. The blade was heavily stylized with a golden handle that resembled the emblem usually seen on She-Ra’s chest and the luminous blue jewel stamped in the middle.

Adora stopped less than ten feet away from Skeletor, staring down the bone-faced sorcerer with a look of determination. For his part, Skeletor didn’t appear all that intimidated by the Princess of Power. If anything, he was amused.

“Ah, Adora, I was wondering when you would make an appearance,” said Skeletor. “I heard the most delightful stories from Hiss and Hordak. Apparently, you’ve suffered from a string of wardrobe malfunctions lately. I regret I wasn’t there to see them in person. Did you come to put on another show?”

“Something like that,” said Adora, her lips curling into a smirk. She raised her new sword above her head and shouted, “**_For the Honor of Grayskull!_**”

The princess exploded into the typical flash of light, but it somehow seemed brighter than usual that even Skeletor’s nonexistent eyes hurt. As the light dimmed and the new She-Ra stepped gracefully forward, everyone around her muttered with mixtures of shock and awe. (Catra neither confirmed nor denied that she drooled openly at any time, no matter what Bow said.)

She-Ra was at the same height as her previous versions – still a good head shorter than He-Man – but had a more defined muscle tone, especially her uncovered arms (her big, buff arms, Catra thought amorously.) She-Ra’s hair was tied up in a ponytail like her civilian form, but reached past her waist and was a shade brighter like silk gold. Her ridiculous unitrd had been replaced by a full-length white body suit (which thankfully included pants) with winged decals on her thighs and a flowing cape around her waist. The golden emblem on her chest connected to the pointed pauldrons to form a heart symbol just below her neck. And her wire-thin tiara looked more like an actual crown; the shape of which seemed awfully familiar to Catra.

She-Ra grinned at the stunned reactions from friends and enemies alike; she was literally _beaming _with pride.

“Amazing…,” Buzz-Off gasped.

“Pretty…,” said Ram Man breathlessly.

“I am so banging that when we get home,” Catra proclaimed.

“And the moment’s ruined,” said Glimmer dryly.

“Hmph, it will take more than a wardrobe upgrade and a flashy light show to impress me,” said Skeletor indifferently. “Men, show the princess how we do things.”

Sssqueeze jumped into the air, spitting, and stretching his fanged arms at the Princess of Power. She-Ra stabbed her sword into the ground, deciding that she didn’t need it, then reached up grappled the snake-arms by their throats. She pulled Sssqueeze down, slamming him into the ground. While the Snake Man was briefly disoriented, She-Ra skillfully tied his arms together into a nice bow, restraining them. By the time Sssqueeze was able to get back to his feet and realize what she had done, She-Ra stepped forward and punched him across ruins into a crumbling wall.

Tung Lashor tried sneaking up on her from behind when he whipped his lengthy appendage at her. She-Ra seemed to have gained a sort of sixth sense for danger as she immediately turned around and caught his tongue in her hand, just inches from her face. The Princess of Power initially cringed from the slimy texture of the tongue, but pushed her disgust down, grabbing it with her other hand and pulling him sharply toward her. Tung Lashor yelped in surprise as he was suddenly vaulted at She-Ra, who stuck out her arm and clotheslined the Snake Man general across the neck. The Snake Man general flipped backwards and landed on his front with a pained moan.

Rattlor snarled furiously as he leapt across the battlefield, landing in front of She-Ra and staring her down at equal height. Rattlor spin around, sweeping his weaponized tail at the princess’s head. She-Ra raised her arms to the side and stopped Rattlor’s tail with her bracelets, surprisingly not budging an inch despite the force behind it. She-Ra quickly grasped the tail with both hands and, with a startled screech from Rattlor, lifted the Snake Man overhead before plowing him back down to the ground. She-Ra didn’t give him any chance to recover and lifted him up before slamming him back down again. And to finish it off, The Princess of Power launched the Snake Man over her shoulder, sending him flying into the thick branches of the yew tree where he dropped thirty feet back to the ground with a small tremor.

She-Ra turned his narrowed gaze on Skeletor, who actually moved half-an-inch back in apprehension. He faintly remembered the last time they dueled at the gates of Castle Grayskull not even a month ago. Back then, She-Ra had not even come close to matching him or He-Man, but this sudden change made it apparent that they were now on equal ground. There’s only one way she could have achieved this newfound strength: The Power of the Elders. Taking one of them would not be a problem for Skeletor, but fighting both siblings at once was too much. Besides, he already had what he came for –

Which Kobra Khan was now charging at She-Ra with, swinging it around dangerously.

“No, get back here, you fool!” Skeletor screamed.

“DIE!” Kobra Khan hissed, ignoring Skeletor’s words.

She-Ra pulled ripped the Sword of Protection out of the ground and waited for Kobra Khan to reach her. When the smallest Snake Man took a swing at her, She-Ra swiped her own sword to meet it. The princess felt no resistance as the blades crossed in midair; the Sword of Protection shattered the Sword of Masters to pieces. Kobra Khan was sent sprawling on his back, clutching the broken hilt of the wicked sword. His brain flew into a panic and he instinctively spread his hood, shooting venom from his fangs. She-Ra raised her sword horizontally to block the spray, then stretched her free hand out to clamp his mouth shut like Rattlor had done earlier. The Princess of Power lifted Kobra Khan off the ground like he weighed less than a loaf of bread, nonchalantly tossing him across the ruins until he collapsed at Skeletor’s feet.

You could practically hear Skeletor grinding his teeth, looking down at Kobra Khan with obvious disappointment then raising his head to She-Ra. If the skull-faced sorcerer had any ideas of joining the fight, they were immediately quashed He-Man stepped into view beside his sister, the Sword of Power poised.

“This is the part where you run away with your tails between your legs,” He-Man taunted.

“…Don’t think you’ve won anything, He-Man,” said Skeletor, his nonexistent eyes burning. “This is just a prelude for what is to come…. Snake Men, retreat!”

Much to Skeletor’s relief, the Snake Men had no problem following his orders. As the soldiers collected their fallen generals and disappeared in the shadows of the jungle, Skeletor picked up the dazed Kobra Khan and allowed him to lean on his shoulder. The self-proclaimed master of evil shot the heroes one final glare before making their exit.

It was only when Skeletor and Kobra Khan was out of sight that She-Ra allowed herself to relax…which didn’t last long before she was surrounded by her friends from all sides. Everyone was chattering loudly, praising her fighting and new wardrobe; even Teela gave her a silent thumbs-up, which was the highest compliment Adora ever got from her. Catra shamelessly threw herself at She-Ra, who immediately cradled the nimble cat in her arms just like she planned. The Magicat purred relentlessly as she blatantly caressed She-Ra’s muscular arms.

“Ooh, I’m loving this,” Catra hummed.

“Get a room, you two,” Glimmer said in mock disgust.

“Okay, we’ll take yours,” Catra replied snarkily.

“Oh no you won’t!” Glimmer shrieked; the last thing she needed was a repeat of what happened in the first week of their relationship.

“I am _loving _what you did with uniform,” Bow complimented gleefully, waving She-Ra’s waist cape playfully. “This is _soooo_ much better than anything I had in mind. How’d you come up with the idea.”

“Let’s just say…I had someone to help me remember what’s really important,” said She-Ra, smiling and glancing sideways at her fiancé.

“She’s talking about me,” Catra proclaimed loudly. “I’ve been saying it for years: you guys are completely hopeless by yourselves. That’s why I should always be in charge of everything from now on.”

“Never gonna happen, Horde scum,” Glimmer retorted flatly.

Man-At-Arms separated from the group and picked up the broken sword hilt that Kobra Khan had dropped. He turned it over in his hand, scrutinizing it, then ultimately threw it away with a dissatisfied grunt.

“If this sword was as special as Skeletor claimed it was,” said Man-At-Arms, “it didn’t live up to the legends.”

“Think it’s another fake?” asked He-Man.

“Undoubtedly – Skeletor doesn’t make mistakes like this,” said Man-At-Arms, frowning.

“So that’s three bad guys leading three different teams going after three supposedly powerful relics that all turned out to be fake,” Teela recounted. “It’s like everything we went through was all for nothing. What was the point?”

“Skeletor said nothing was as it seemed,” said He-Man, humming thoughtfully. “What if the artifact weren’t the Council’s primary goal. What if this was all an elaborate distraction for something else?”

“Any ideas what that could be?” asked She-Ra worriedly.

“I don’t know,” said He-Man, shaking his head. “But whatever it is, you can bet the Council of Evil will be even more dangerous than before.”

* * *

Skeletor and Kobra Khan returned to Snake Mountain from their resent defeat; the latter hanging his head in shame as they stepped into the throne room. The throne itself was left unoccupied as agreed between the leaders of the main factions – a testament that they were equals – and everyone was gathered around the round table in the center of the room. Hordak and Hiss were already in their seats when they arrived while Shadow Weaver lurked in the darkness like the creepy hag that she was. Skeletor took his seat at the table, just shortly before Kobra Khan dropped to his hands and knees in a pleading motion.

“Forgive me, King Hiss,” Kobra Khan begged. “I have failed you. The Sword of Masters was destroyed because of my foolishness. I accept whatever punishment you see fit.”

“Now, now, let’s not be hasty,” said Skeletor coolly, much to Kobra Khan’s surprise. “It was my fault to begin with. It’s obvious that the sword’s power had waned from the centuries of disuse. It stood no chance against the Power of the Elders. Do not blame him, Hiss,” he said to the king of serpents. “I take full responsibility for this failure.”

“I…I…” Kobra Khan stammered.

“Hmm…if Skeletor thinks you are to be forgiven…then I shall take his word for it,” King Hiss spoke after a moment of contemplation. “Go. Return to our men. Make sure they cooperate with the others. The Council of Evil will need everyone in due time.”

“Of course, King Hiss,” said Kobra Khan, a look of relief on his face as he rose to his feet. “Thank you. Thank you.”

Kobra Khan backed away from the table, his head bowed in respect as he walked toward the exit. He shot a look of gratitude to Skeletor before he fled the room. The masters of evil waited until they could no longer hear Kobra Khan’s pattering footsteps…then Skeletor rounded on Shadow Weaver, his eyes glowing furiously.

“If I didn’t have use for you, I would _kill_ you for sending us on that insufferable scavenger hunt of yours!” he roared. “As if He-Man and his sidekicks weren’t bad enough without having to play babysitting with those idiotic reptiles!”

“Your henchmen are no better,” Hordak snorted. “It confounds the mind how you ever made it this far with those worthless dregs you dragged up from the mud.”

“The Horde is a weak and inferior sub-species, the whole lot of them,” King Hiss sneered. “They would be served better as food than soldiers.”

“Regardless of your personal opinion, they all seem to have taken a liking to you,” said Shadow Weaver, sliding up to the table. “At least enough to follow orders without question. And all it took was hiding a few worthless trinkets in and waiting for the heroes to play their parts. And it worked out well for us, did it not?"

“Your generals didn’t exactly make it easy for me,” Skeletor said to King Hiss. “At least I managed to get Kobra Khan on my side.”

“That should be enough to sway the soldiers to follow,” said King Hiss. “As for Rattlor and my generals, I will see to it that they become more cooperative. And if they don’t, then I have no need for men who won’t follow orders.”

“If only that was the only problem,” said Skeletor. “She-Ra made another appearance at the forest, but nothing like what you two described. She’s changed. More powerful than before. She has been imbued with the Power of the Elders like her brother, and now she presents a real threat to the Council.”

“Adora may have changed physically,” Shadow Weaver crooned, “but she is still the same child mentally and emotionally. She will not be a problem, once you know where to hurt her.”

“And you would know all about that, wouldn’t you?” said Hordak.

“Trust me, Adora will the least of our concerns,” said Shadow Weaver confidently. “For now…let’s see what happens next….”


End file.
